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(J5equeaf^eb  fig  ^im  to 

t^e  feifirarg  of 

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(|)rtncefon  C^eofo^tcctf  ^eminarg 


BV  230  .S65  1850 

Spring,  Gardiner,  1785-1873. 

The  mercy  seat 


k. 


^^CU^      S.       \)()-^J^A^ 


pfl .    4' .    <>^ 


T  H  E 


MERCY    SEAT; 


THOLGHTS    SUGGESTED    HV 


(Jl)c    Corb'0    Jpraijcr. 


GARDINER   SPRING,   D.D. 

PASIOIl  OK  Bi'.UK  I'HKSPVTKUIAN  CHIRCH   IX  THE  CITY  OK  NKW   VOKK. 


NEW     YORK: 
P  U  B  L  I  S  II  E  D     BY     :\r .     \V.     D  ()  D  D , 

BRICK   CHUIICH   CHAl'KL,  CITY  HALL  8(JUAi;  K, 
(  ()  V  V  O  S  1  -l-  K    THE    CI  T  Y    HALL.) 

1850. 


Entkred,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1819,  by 

M.    W.    I)  O  D  D , 

lu   the  Clerk's   OfTice  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  for  M>e 
Southern  District  of  New  York. 


®ur  fatl)tx, 

u)l)o  art  in  ^tavm, 

Sjallowtb  be  ®:i)ij   name. 

€1)1)  kingbom  come.    Sl)n  toill  be  5one 

on  earti)  as  it  is  in  ^eauen. 

@iue  ns  tl)i5  5ai)  onr  bailij  bveab. 

3.n5  forgiDe  ns  our  irebts, 

as  rue  forgitje  our  irebtors. 

Tini   lea&   us   not   into   temptation, 

but  beliuer  us  from  euil. 

JTor  tl}ine  is  tl)e  king&om,  anb  tlie 

poiuer,  anb  tl)e  glorn, 

foreuer,  :2Vmen. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

PAOC 

GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS  ON  PRAYER,  ........    7 

CHAPTER  H. 

THE   INSTRUCTIONS    OF    THE   BIBLE    AS   TO    THE     MATTER    AND 

MANNER    OF    PRAYER, 31 

CHAPTER  IH. 

GOD    A    FATHER, 57 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE    NAME    OF    GOD    HALLOWED,  87 

CHAPTER  V. 

THE  KINGDOM  OF  GOD  ON  THE  EARTH, 112 

CHAPTER  VI. 

THE   MEANS    OF   EXTENDING    GOd's   KINGDOM, 1^ 

CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  WILL  OF  GOD  PERFORMED  ON  EARTH, 154 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

DEtKNDENCK  FOR  TEMPORAL  BLESSINGS, 177 


i--JSILf 


PAGE 

201 


Vi  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

PRAYER   AND    PAINS, 

CHAPTER  X. 

221 
THE  DOCTRINE  OF  FORGIVENESS, 

CHAPTER  XI. 

239 
PRAYER   FOR    FORGIVENESS, .      .       .    *yo 

CHAPTER  XIL 

255 
A    FORGIVING    SPIRIT, 

CHAPTER  Xm. 

A    MARTIAL   SPIRIT    NOT   THE    SPIRIT    OF    CHRISTIANITY,       .      .275 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

TEMPTATION    DEPLORED,       

CHAPTER  XV. 

THE   DREAD    OF    SIN, 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE    ARGUMENT   BY   WHICH    PRAYER   IS    ENFORCED,         .      .      .    355 


# 


THE    MERCY    SEAT. 


CHAPTER   I. 

GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS  ON  PRAYER. 

The  Mercy  Seat  was  the  covering  of  the 
ark  of  the  covenant.  At  each  end  of  this  over- 
shadowing oracle  was  a  cherub  of  pure  and 
massive  gold,  stretching  out  its  wings,  each  to- 
ward the  other,  and  forming  a  sort  of  throne. 
There  was  the  visible  emblem  of  the  divine 
presence,  and  "God  appeared  in  the  cloud." 
There  the  high  priest  took  of  the  blood  of  the 
bullock  of  the  sin-offering,  "  and  sprinkled  it 
with  his  finger  upon  the  mercy  seat  eastward, 
seven  times."  The  book  of  the  Law  was  there, 
protected  by  the  ark  of  the  covenant,  and  bear- 
ing the  marks  of  atoning  blood.  It  was  God's 
throne  of  grace,  and  where  the  thrilling  words 
were  often  addressed,  "  O  thou  who  art  seated 
between  the  cherubim !"  It  was  the  place  of 
prayer:    "There  will  I  meet  thee,"  says  God 


8  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


to  Moses,  "  and  I  will  commune  with  thee  from 
between  the  two  cherubim  which  are  upon  the 
ark  of  the  testimony." 

We  wish  the  reader  to  go  with  us  to  that 
mercy  seat.  We  doubt  not  he  has  often  been 
there,  and  listened  to  the  instructions,  as  well 
as  been  comforted  by  the  hopes  uttered  from 
the  holy  oracle.  We  are  not  introducing  him 
to  new  scenes,  nor  do  we  profess  to  interest 
him  with  novel  truths.  There  is  nothing  new 
on  the  subject  of  prayer.  How  can  there  be  ? 
It  is  addressed  to  the  same  Being,  by  creatures 
of  the  same  fallen  character;  it  is  expressive 
of  the  same  affections,  and  under  the  influence 
of  the  same  Spirit ;  it  utters,  for  the  most  part,  the 
same  precious  thoughts,  and  for  the  same  ends. 

There  are  men  who  have  questioned  the 
propriety  of  prayer;  but  they  are  those  who, 
though  they  need  the  most,  are  most  slow 
to  ask.  There  are  those  who  feel  insuper- 
able objections  to  it;  but  they  are  only  the 
objections  of  a  prayerless  heart.  There  are 
those  who  feel  strong  temptations  to  neglect 
it ;  but  it  is  because  Satan,  that  great  deceiver, 
is  well  aware  that  the  man  whose  home  is  the 
mercy  seat  is  no  longer  the  victim  of  his  delu- 
sions. And  there  are  those  who  have  no  com- 
fort in  it,  and  therefore  restrain  prayer  before 
God.     Yet  is  there  no  duty  the  Scriptures  more 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS  ON  PRAYER. 


explicitly  enforce ;  no  source  of  consolation 
which  they  more  abundantly  magnify. 

Prayer  is  the  language  of  desire  ;  it  is  "  the 
offering  up  of  our  desires  to  God."  It  is  the 
devotional  thoughts  and  affections  of  the  soul 
expressed  in  words.  No  spiritual  emotions  en- 
ter more  intimately  into  the  experience  of  the 
Christian,  or  more  truly  form  the  character  of 
his  piety,  than  those  which  are  felt  and  ex- 
pressed in  his  habitual  intercourse  with  God. 
If  he  has  adoring  views  of  his  Maker,  and  hum- 
bling views  of  himself;  if  he  hungers  and  thirsts 
after  righteousness  ;  if  he  has  strong  confidence 
and  joy;  if  his  desires  go  out  toward  the  en- 
largement and  beautifying  of  the  church  of  God 
on  the  earth,  and  the  salvation  of  men ;  no- 
where do  these  internal  emotions  and  desires 
find  utterance  so  truly  as  in  prayer.  Where 
these  devout  affections  exist  with  anything 
like  ardor  and  intensity,  they  are  uttered  by 
a  sort  of  necessity.  Such  persons  cannot  help 
praying.  It  is  not  possible  that  emotions  thus 
deep  and  spiritual,  thus  high-born  and  heaven- 
imparted,  should  remain  silent  and  smothered 
within  the  bosom.  The  heart  is  too  deeply  af- 
fected by  them  not  to  seek  this  relief. 

Prayer  is  the  language  of  nature,  because  it  is 
the  language  of  desire  and  want.  Even  the 
"young  lions,  when  they  wander  for  lack  of  meat, 

1* 


10  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


cry  unto  God !''  The  veriest  infidel,  the  vile  athe- 
ist, in  seasons  of  great  public  calamity,  or  per- 
sonal danger  and  suflfering,  forget  their  infidelity 
and  atheism,  and  pray.  Emphatically  then  is  it 
true  of  the  Christian,  that  he  is  a  man  of  prayer. 
Though  he  knov^^s  that  his  neglect  of  prayer  will 
not  prevent  the  Father  of  mercies  from  causing 
his  sun  to  shine  upon  the  evil  and  upon  the  good, 
nor  his  rain  from  descending  on  the  just  and  the 
unjust ;  his  own  heart  will  not  allow  him  to  live 
in  that  neglect.  The  divine  bounty  may  still 
deck  the  earth  with  verdure  and  clothe  it  with 
fertility,  and  he  may  be  a  partaker  of  this,  God's 
impartial  goodness,  while  it  is  unsolicited ;  yet 
is  there  something  within  his  own  heart  that 
constrains  him  to  pray.  He  has  wants  which 
nothing  but  prayer  can  supply ;  spiritual  neces- 
sities, wants  of  the  soul,  which  without  prayer 
feeds  on  husks.  Just  as  the  plant  strikes 
its  roots  into  the  ground  to  draw  thence  its 
vigor  and  nutriment ;  just  as  the  flow  er  opens 
its  bosom  to  the  sunlight  and  the  dew ;  so  the 
soul,  by  prayer,  has  communication  with  the 
God  of  all  grace,  and  places  itself  under  the 
kind  influences  of  his  love.  It  is  like  the  stream 
cut  off  from  its  fountain,  when  it  ceases  to  pray. 
It  is  like  the  plant  that  grows  in  the  shade,  pale 
and  sickly ;  the  sport  of  the  winds,  and  blown 
about  by  the  tempests  of  passion  and  the  storms 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS  ON  PRAYER,      11 


of  earth,  because  it  seeks  not  this  heavenly  pro- 
tection and  aliment. 

Those  who  know  most  of  the  power  of  prayer, 
are  themselves  the  witnesses  of  the  strength  and 
fervor  of  its  desires.  None  have  felt  more  deeply 
than  they,  that  they  cannot  break  the  bondage  of 
sin,  nor,  when  once  broken,  can  they  enjoy  the 
liberty  of  God's  children,  without  strong  crying 
and  many  tears.  "  Having  escaped  the  pollutions 
of  the  world,  through  the  knowledge  of  God  their 
Saviour,"  they  are  sure  to  be  again  "  entangled  in 
them  and  overcome,"  if  they  live  without  prayer. 
Those  periods  of  their  history  in  which  their 
faith  has  been  the  most  weak,  their  love  cold, 
their  zeal  relaxed  and  wearied ;  when  their  rel- 
ish for  heavenly  contemplation  became  dull 
and  insipid,  and  they  "  savored  not  the  things 
that  be  of  God,  but  the  things  that  be  of  men;" 
and  when  they  cast  their  eye  backward  upon 
the  world  and  its  pleasures;  were  seasons  in 
which  their  lukewarmness,  if  it  did  not  shut 
them  out  of  their  closets,  shut  them  out  from  all 
communion  with  God.  The  degree  of  interest 
which  men  take  in  this  religious  service,  may 
be  uniformly  looked  upon  as  a  sort  of  moral 
barometer  by  which  they  may  ascertain  the 
elevations  and  depressions  of  their  spiritual 
state.  The  mercy  seat  is  the  place  where  the 
Shekinah  dwells,  and  where,  beholding  as  in  a 


12  THE  MERCY  SEAT, 


glass  the  glory  of  the  Lord,  the  suppliant  is  trans- 
formed into  the  same  image,  from  glory  to  glory. 
It  is  the  mountain-top,  which  catches  the  last 
rays  of  the  sun  when  it  no  longer  shines  on  the 
vale  below. 

The  examples  of  prayer  furnished  in  the  Bi- 
ble are  exemplifications  of  true,  sincere,  and 
strong  desire.  The  only  rebukes  to  prayer  ever 
uttered  in  the  sacred  volume  are  against  those 
supplications  in  which  the  desires  of  the  soul 
have  no  part,  where  the  heart  is  w^anting,  and 
where  the  most  solemn  offerings  are  but  "  vain 
oblations." 

Every-  gracious  affection  has  both  its  aliment 
and  expression  in  prayer.  Its  adoring  love  is 
there  uttered,  sometimes  breaking  out  in  the 
ecstacy  of  joy,  and  exclaiming,  "  Whom  have  I 
in  heaven  but  thee,  and  there  is  none  on  the 
earth  that  I  desire  beside  thee!"  There  too 
are  the  expressions  of  its  penitence,  weeping  at 
the  feet  of  mercy,  sorrowing  for  the  past,  cover- 
ing its  face,  and  in  prostration  of  soul  before  the 
offended  majesty  of  heaven,  uttering  its  pur- 
poses of  new  obedience.  There  are  the  actings 
of  its  confidence,  the  simplicity  of  its  trust  in 
God,  as  w^ell  as  the  frequent  renewal  of  that 
endearing  and  joyful  submission  to  the  divine 
claims  which  was  the  turning  point  in  the  sin- 
ner's progress  from  darkness  to   light.     There 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS  ON  PRAYER.      13 


too  are  the  more  abundant  utterances  of  his 
gratitude.  A  thankful  acknowledgment  of 
God's  mercies  forms  no  small  part  of  prayer. 
No  man  has  received  so  few  mercies,  that  he 
has  nothing  to  thank  his  Maker  for  w^hen  he  ap- 
proaches his  throne  in  acts  of  w^orship.  A  sin- 
ner has  reason  for  songs  of  praise  as  long  as  he 
is  out  of  hell.  Not  returning  thanks  to  God,  is 
one  great  reason  why  our  prayers  are  not  more 
frequently  answered.  Christians  sometimes  pray 
as  though  they  had  nothing  to  do  but  mourn. 
Ministers  sometimes  appear  before  God  as  the 
mouth  of  his  church,  as  if  she  was  in  a  state  of 
condemnation.  This  is  unwarranted,  and  char- 
acterizes a  spirit  of  bondage.  "  Be  careful 
for  nothing,"  says  the  Apostle,  "  but  in  every- 
thing, by  prayer,  and  supplication,  with  thanks- 
giving, let  your  requests  be  made  known  unto 
God."  We  would  not  offend  against  the  gen- 
eration of  God's  children,  much  less  would  we 
depreciate  the  sighs  of  a  broken,  contrite  heart, 
when  we  say,  that  grief  and  mourning  are  not 
the  only  emotions  which  become  the  mercy 
seat.  There  is  no  fear  of  our  ever  being  too 
penitent  and  humble.  "  The  sacrifices  of  God 
are  a  broken  spirit,  a  broken  and  contrite  heart 
he  will  not  despise."  The  prayer  of  the  publi- 
can when  he  stood  afar  off  and  smote  upon  his 
breast,  and  said  "  God  be  merciful  to  me  a  sin- 


14  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


ner,"  is  a  strong  rebuke  to  the  spirit  of  self- 
righteousness  and  Pharisaic  self-complacency  in 
prayer.  There  are  seasons  when  the  heart  is 
so  burdened  with  a  sense  of  sin,  that  it  can  do 
little  else  than  mourn.  But,  while  these  things 
are  true,  and  important  truths,  we  are  not  to 
forget,  that  '*  the  fruit  of  the  spirit  is  love,  peace 
and  joy."  There  may  be  self-righteous  tears,  as 
well  as  hopes  of  self-righteousness.  It  is  not 
unfitting  in  a  sinner  to  call  upon  God  "  with 
joyful  lips."  The  meek  and  subdued  cheerful- 
ness, the  holy  joy  of  piety,  greatly  honor  the 
God  of  our  salvation.  If  I  mistake  not,  those 
are  the  most  acceptable  offerings,  and  those  the 
most  profitable  seasons  of  prayer,  and  the  most 
invigorating  for  duty  and  trial,  when  the  soul 
most  rejoices  in  God  through  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ. 

Prayer  is  an  humble,  but  not  a  servile  spirit. 
There  is  more  cheerful  thanksgiving  in  the 
heart  of  a  praying  ^an,  than  in  all  the  men 
of  the  world  put  together.  "  I  will  bless  the 
Lord,"  says  the  Psalmist,  "at  all  times;  his 
praise  shall  be  continually  in  my  mouth.  My 
soul  shall  make  her  boast  in  the  Lord ;  the 
humble  shall  hear  thereof,  and  be  glad.  O 
magnify  the  Lord  with  me,  and  let  us  exalt  his 
name  together !" 

Prayer  is  a  very  different    thing   from   say- 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS  ON  PRAYER.  15 


ing  a  prayer.  As  the  language  of  desire,  it  is 
marked  by  great  tenderness,  great  sincerity, 
and  great  simplicity.  God  who  searches  the 
heart  has  said,  that  he  acknowledges  not  the 
worship  of  the  lips.  One  great  reason  why  the 
divine  presence  is  so  little  felt  in  our  devotional 
exercises  is,  that  our  hearts  are  not  in  our  prayers. 
Prayer  brings  the  soul  of  man  into  contact  with 
his  Maker.  How  unlike  that  cold,  formal,  list- 
less manner  in  which  both  those  who  pray,  and 
those  who  concur  in  this  service,  often  draw 
nigh  to  the  mercy  seat,  and  practise  their  mock- 
eries before  God,  even  in  his  sanctuary ! 

The  object  of  prayer  is  the  living  God.  Nor 
let  this  be  deemed  too  common-place  a  thought; 
w^ould  that  it  had  a  place  more  common  in  the 
mind  of  every  worshipper.  There  is  no  truth 
the  Scriptures  teach  more  frequently  than  that 
God  is  the  07ili/  object  of  religious  worship.  To 
no  mere  creature  on  earth,  or  in  heaven,  may 
men  bend  the  knee  in  prayer.  "  Thou  shalt 
have  no  other  gods  before  me."  It  is  written, 
"  Thou  shalt  worship  the  Lord  thy  God,  and 
him  only  shalt  thou  serve."  The  Bible  knows 
nothing  of  the  idolatries  of  that  anti-Christian 
system  of  worship,  which  justifies  the  use  of 
images,  and  prayers  offered  to  saints  and  angels. 
Notwithstanding  the  frivolous  distinctions  in- 
sisted on  by  the  advocates  of  this  system,  as  to 


16  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


the  different  kinds  and  degrees  of  religious  hom- 
age thus  paid  to  creatures,  the  minds  of  the  great 
mass  of  the  people  are  unaffected  by  these  re- 
finements. The  practical  influence  of  such  wor- 
ship is  a  positive  encroachment  on  the  honors 
of  the  Supreme  Being,  who  is  a  jealous  God,  and 
will  not  give  his  glory  to  another.  It  is  difficult 
to  see  how  any  mind,  however  constituted,  can 
preserve  the  simplicity  of  its  devotion  and  de- 
pendence unimpaired,  amidst  these  external 
symbols  and  multiplied  objects  of  adoration. 

Such  is  not  the  worship  of  the  only  living  and 
true  God.  Of  all  this  bowing  at  the  shrines  of 
departed  saints,  this  reverence  of  the  conse- 
crated wafer,  and  this  adoration  of  the  host, 
these  votive  offerings,  and  fervent,  solemn  invo- 
cations addressed  to  the  Virgin,  this  entire  ma- 
chinery of  the  crucifix,  the  statues,  the  paint- 
ings, and  all  the  apparatus  by  which  theatrical 
effect  is  produced,  and  the  imagination  and 
senses  captivated  and  enslaved,  we  may  well 
say,  "  What  meaneth  this  device  ?"  The  voice 
of  God  demands  of  all  such  idolaters,  "  Who 
hath  required  this  at  j^our  hands  ?"  Prayer  is 
an  act  of  worship.  "  Hearken  unto  the  voice 
of  my  cry,  my  King  and  my  God ;  for  unto  thee 
will  I  pray."  God  only  is  omnipresent  to  see 
the  worshippers,  and  to  hear  their  worship. 
"The  eyes  of  the  Lord  are  upon  the  righteous, 


GENERAL   OBSERVATIONS   ON   PRAYER.  17 


and  his  ear  is  open  to  their  cry."  He  only  can 
accept  and  answer  their  prayers.  "  The  Lord 
is  nigh  unto  all  them  that  call  upon  him;  that 
call  upon  him  in  truth.  He  will  fulfil  the  desire 
of  them  that  fear  him ;  he  will  also  hear  their 
cry,  and  will  save  them." 

But  if  God  is  the  only  object  of  prayer,  what 
is  the  way  of  access  to  him  ?  Is  it  through 
men  ?  or  through  the  ministration  of  angels  ?  or 
by  martyred  saints  ?  or  by  our  own  merit  and 
righteousness  ?  These  inquiries  suggest  solemn 
and  affecting  thoughts. 

The  character  of  the  suppliants  is  sufficiently 
humbling;  the  Being  they  address  ineffably  great 
and  exalted.  It  is  a  most  wonderful  fact  that  ab- 
ject man,  man  that  is  ''fallen  by  his  iniquity," 
should  have  intercourse  with  the  high  and  holy 
One.  On  the  lips  of  a  sinning  creature,  that  fear- 
ful name,  the  Lord  thy  God,  is  a  name  of  solemn 
import.  O  weigh  the  vast  meaning  of  these  words ! 
Well  may  a  holy  fear  take  possession  of  the  heart, 
and  awe  it  into  reverence  as  it  approaches  the 
King  Eternal,  Immortal,  and  Invisible.  His 
greatness  knows  no  bounds ;  his  perfections  are 
infinite  ;  his  spirituality  is  unmingled  and  pure  ; 
his  existence  has  no  beginning  and  will  have  no 
end.  He  is  all-seeing,  yet  unseen;  the  most 
distant,  yet  the  most  near;  comprehending  all, 
and   comprehended   by   none;    containing    all, 


18  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


while  nothing  contains  him.  There  is  nothing 
but  he  controls  by  his  power;  nothing  but  what 
lives  and  moves  within  the  compass  of  his  im- 
mensity. Spotless  cherubim,  when  they  wor- 
ship him,  cover  their  faces  with  their  wings, 
and  "  say  one  to  another.  Holy,  holy,  holy  is  the 
Lord  God  of  hosts,  the  whole  earth  is  full  of  his 
glory!"  "The  wicked  shall  not  stand  in  his 
sight,  he  hateth  all  the  workers  of  iniquity." 
The  nearer  the  sinful  and  polluted  come  to  him, 
the  nearer  do  they  come  to  "  a  consuming  fire." 
To  the  perverse,  rebellious,  and  guilty  children 
of  an  apostate  race,  his  throne  might  well  be 
overshadowed  with  clouds  and  darkness,  and 
made  repulsive  and  inaccessible.  The  glory  of 
man  is  fallen ;  he  is  sunk  in  the  dust ;  he  has 
no  wings  to  soar  to  the  high  privilege  of  com- 
muning with  a  holy  God. 

Yet  even  man,  fallen,  aspires  after  this ;  his 
desires,  corrupted  as  they  are,  have  a  sort  of 
inbred  tendency  toward  something  above  and 
beyond  this  narrow  world.  He  is  not  satisfied 
without  God  ;  nor  can  he  ever  be  happy,  until 
he  returns  to  the  bosom  of  his  aggrieved  and 
forsaken  Father.  And,  wondrous  fact,  men  thus 
polluted  and  vile,  instead  of  cringing  as  slaves 
before  his  throne  under  the  terrifying  expres- 
sions of  his  omnipotent  justice,  are  drawn  to  it 
as   sons,   and   by  the  attractions   of  his   love. 


GENERAL   OBSERVATIONS    ON   PRAYER.  19 


There  is  "  a  new  and  living  way  into  the  holiest 
of  all  by  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ."  Access  to 
God.  as  the  hearer  of  prayer  is  the  effect  only  of 
that  great  work  of  redeeming  mercy  in  which 
the  second  person  of  the  ever-blessed  and  ador- 
able Trinity  came  to  seek  and  save  those  which 
were  lost,  and  adv  ance  them  to  the  privileges  of 
children.  We  have  nothing  of  our  own  to 
plead ;  yet  in  his  name  may  our  prayer  go  up 
as  incense,  and  the  lifting  up  of  our  hands  as  an 
acceptable  sacrifice.  Humbling  and  prostrating 
as  the  consideration  is,  we  have  not  a  rag  of 
righteousness  left  us,  in  which  we  may  appear* 
before  the  throne.  The  worthiness  is  not  in  us. 
Christ's  name,  Christ's  sacrifice,  Christ's  right- 
eousness, Christ's  work,  Christ's  entire  media- 
tion as  the  atoning,  interceding  High  Priest, 
form  the  centre  and  channel  of  all  God's  com- 
munications with  apostate  men,  and  the  medium 
of  their  access  to  God.  "For  through  him  we 
have  access  by  one  Spirit  unto  the  Father."  It 
is  not  possible  for  a  sinner  to  find  any  other  way 
of  access.  In  the  religion  of  a  sinner,  the  medi- 
ation of  the  Son  of  God  is  the  great  elementary 
principle.  Natural  religion  is  of  no  use  to  him, 
and  only  leads  to  the  neglect  of  that  which  is 
revealed.  Natural  religion  is  only  for  beings 
that  are  sinless.  As  sinners,  we  can  have  noth- 
ing to  do  with  God,  except  through  Christ.     We 


20  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


have  freedom  of  access  only  in  that  way  which 
he  has  consecrated  by  his  blood.     We  have  no 
other.     "  I,"  saith  he,  "  am  the  way,  and  the 
truth,    and   the  life;    no  man  cometh  unto   the 
Father  hut  hj  me."     He  is  the  altar  whence  the 
hallowed  incense  arises  which  is  expressive  of 
the  purity  and  ardor  of  a  true  devotion.     We 
have  "  an  altar,"  says  the  Apostle,  "  whereof 
they  have  no  right  to  eat  which  serve  at  the 
tabernacle  :"  an  altar  that  abolishes  all  other 
altars ;  a  sacrifice  that  abolishes  all  other  sacri- 
fices ;  a  name  that  is  above  every  name.     "  The 
altar   sanctifies   the    gift."      And  well   it    may 
sanctify  it.     It  was  erected  not  by  the  hands  of 
men;    the   invisible    God    erected   it   on   holy 
ground,  in  the  centre  of  this  perishing  world. 
There,  "  without  the  gate"  of  the  Holy  City, 
where  God  laid  on  him  the  iniquity  of  us  all, 
and  the  fires  of  eternal  justice  consumed  the 
priest,  the  altar,  and  the  sacrifice,  that  way  to 
the  mercy  seat  was  opened,  without  which  all 
amicable  intercourse  between  heaven  and  earth 
had  been  forever  suspended. 

We  dwell  on  the  thought,  that  prayer  is  of- 
fered in  the  name  of  Christ,  because,  obvious  as 
it  is,  it  is  both  in  theory  and  in  practice  a  very 
important  thought.  Men  have  no  more  access 
to  God  than  the  devils  have,  save  in  this  "  new 
way  which  he  hath  consecrated  through  the  veil, 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS   ON   PRAYER.  21 


that  is  to  say,  his  flesh."  It  is  no  small  matter 
for  a  man  whose  conscience  is  burdened  by  a 
sense  of  guilt,  to  find  access.  He  who  has 
never  experienced  this  embarrassment,  has  yet 
to  learn  that  he  is  a  sinner.  We  may  be  al- 
most certain,  that  if  our  prayers  are  put  up  in 
the  name  of  Christ,  and  not  answered,  there  is 
something  wrong  about  them ;  and  we  may  be 
quite  certain  there  is  everything  wrong  about 
them,  if  they  are  not  oflfered  in  the  name  of 
Christ.  The  promise  is  absolute,  "  Whatsoever 
ye  shall  ask  the  Father  in  7ny  name,  he  will  give 
it  you."  Yet  to  pray  in  the  name  of  Christ,  is 
not  simply  to  use  the  words.  There  is  no  spirit- 
ual spell  in  the  mere  words.  They  cannot 
charm  away  guilt,  nor  charm  answers  to  our 
supplications.  To  pray  in  the  name  of  Christ, 
comprises  a  heart-felt  acknowledgment  of  him 
as  the  only  appointed  and  accepted  way  to  the 
throne.  The  mere  intellectual  perception  of 
this  truth,  is  not  enough.  It  must  be  believed 
and  felt ;  with  all  its  humbling,  encouraging  im- 
port, it  must  be  received  into  the  heart.  The 
soul  must  have  an  immediate  and  direct  refer- 
ence to  it  in  all  her  prayers;  it  must  be  confided 
in,  and  carried  into  the  chamber  of  audience. 

Prayer  has  power  and  influence.  The  spirit  of 
prayer  and  the  blessing  of  God  have  ever  stood 
abreast,  and  gone  hand  in  hand  in  his  govern- 


22  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


ment  of  the  world.  "  For  all  these  things  I  will 
be  inquired  of  by  the  house  of  Israel,"  says  he, 
"  to  do  it  for  them."  A  prayerless  man  is  an 
unblest  man ;  a  prayerless  Church  is  languid, 
inert,  and  unblest.  Those  portions  of  God's 
heritage  which  have  been  most  distinguished 
for  the  spirit  of  prayer,  have  known  most  of  the 
power  and  presence  of  God,  and  been  most  dis- 
tinguisJied  for  the  effusions  of  his  Spirit.  When- 
ever he  is  about  to  do  great  things  for  his  peo- 
ple, he  rouses  them  from  their  lukewarmness, 
and  stirs  them  up  to  prayer.  There  is  no  surer 
criterion  by  w  hich  to  judge  if  God  is  about  to 
do  great  things  for  them,  than  an  imusual  spirit 
of  prayer.  It  was  so  in  the  days  of  the  Old 
Testament  dispensation,  and  it  is  so  under  the 
New.  It  was  so  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  and 
it  wall  be  so  when  the  scattered  families  of  that 
same  people  are  gathered  in.  "  I  will  pour 
out  upon  them,"  says  God,  "the  spirit  of  grace 
and  supplication,  and  they  shall  look  on  him 
whom  they  have  pierced,  and  mourn."  He 
"  hath  not  said  to  the  seed  of  Jacob,  Seek  ye 
my  face,  in  vain."  O  thou  that  hearest  prayer, 
is  one  of  the  usual  appellations  by  w  hich  he  is 
addressed  in  the  Holy  Scriptures.  This  is  one 
of  the  names  by  wdiich  he  is  know^n,  and  this  is 
his  memorial  to  all  generations. 

No  small  part  of  the  Scriptural  history  is  em- 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS  ON  PRAYER.       23 


ployed  in  recounting  the  achievements  of  prayer. 
A  selection  of  the  prayers  recorded  in  the  Scrip- 
tures, with  a  detailed  account  of  the  manner  in 
which  they  were  answered,  would  form  an  in- 
structive and  edifying  volume  to  the  people  of 
God.  He  has  pledged  his  faithfulness  as  the 
hearer  of  prayer,  both  to  his  Son  and  to  his  peo- 
ple ;  and  facts  there  recorded  show,  and  facts 
hereafter  to  be  recorded  will  show  also,  that  he 
is  not  a  man  that  he  should  lie,  nor  the  son  of 
man  that  he  should  repent.  There  is  perhaps  no 
more  impressive  proof  of  the  power  of  prayer  than 
the  fact  that  God  represents  himself  as  embar- 
rassed by  the  prayers  of  his  people  when  he  is 
about  to  make  bare  his  arm  in  judgment  against 
his  enemies.  "  Let  me  alone,"  said  He  to  Moses, 
"  that  I  may  destroy  this  people."  "  I  do  not 
say  that  he  shall  pray  for  it,"  is  a  limitation  con- 
fined to  the  unpardonable  sin.  It  is  indeed  a 
marvellous  truth,  which  God  himself  has  re- 
vealed, that  "  the  effectual  fervent  prayer  of 
the  righteous  man  availeth  much."  The  men 
of  prayer  look  for  answers  to  their  supplications, 
and  they  are  warranted  in  so  doing.  One  of  the 
differences  between  the  prayers  of  Christians 
and  the  prayers  of  other  men,  is  that  the  latter 
pray  without  minding  the  answers,  while  the 
former  wait  for  an  answer,  and  in  substance  if 
not  in  form,  and  in  God's  own  time,  they  get  it. 


24  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


Prayer,  therefore,  is  an  imspeakahle  privilege. 
For  a  creature,  like  fallen  man,  to  be  allowed 
to  draw  nigh  to  the  Holy  God,  and  express  all 
the  desires  of  his  heart,  in  the  name,  and  plead 
the  full  merits  of  Him  in  whom  the  Eternal 
Father  is  well  pleased,  is  indeed  the  privilege 
of  sons.  Abject  man,  man  that  is  fallen  by  his 
iniquity,  enjoys  this  privilege.  The  hour  of 
prayer  is  the  appointed  hour  of  this  communion. 
Here  the  Father  of  mercies  meets  his  offending 
creature  with  the  smile  of  reconciliation  ;  and 
here  the  creature,  with  a  heart  sprinkled  from 
an  evil  conscience,  meets  his  offended,  but  gra- 
cious and  reconciled  Father.  There  are  few 
declarations  in  the  Bible,  which,  in  the  entire 
range  of  their  instructions,  are  more  richly 
fraught  wdth  the  consolation  which  a  sinner 
needs,  than  the  declaration  made  by  God  to 
Moses,  when  he  said,  "  And  thou  slialt  make 
the  mercy  seat  above  upon  the  ark  ;  and  in  the 
ark  shalt  put  the  testimony  that  I  shall  give  thee. 
And  there  will  1  meet  thee,  and  I  will  commune 
with  thee  from  above  the  mercy  seat.''  It  is  the 
communion  of  the  created,  with  the  uncreated 
mind  ;  a  creature  of  yesterday  holding  converse 
with  him  wdio  is  from  everlasting ;  a  creature 
who  knows  nothing,  in  intimate  and  unembar- 
rassed intercourse  with  him  who  knows  all 
things ;  one,  who  for  his  abjectness  is  as  a  worm, 


GENERAL   OBSERVATIONS   ON   PRAYER.  25 


and  who  for  his  sinfuhiess  might  make  sackcloth 
his  covering,  tranquil  and  comforted  in  the  pres- 
ence of  that  holy  Lord  God. 

Nor  is  there  any  longer  any  one  appointed 
place  of  prayer.  "  In  all  places  where  I  record 
my  name,"  says  He,  "  I  will  come  unto  thee, 
and  I  will  bless  thee."  Territorial  divisions, 
secular  and  ecclesiastical  demarcations,  earthly 
distinctions,  are  all  banished  here.  It  is  God's 
communion  with  the  king  and  the  beggar,  with 
those  who  are  near  on  the  land,  and  those  who 
are  afar  off  upon  the  sea.  True  piety  is  the 
same  thing  everywhere,  because  God  is  every- 
where the  same  object  of  worship,  and  the  same 
hearer  of  prayer.  To  different  climes,  and  all 
the  different  classes  of  men,  to  men  of  the  vari- 
ous habits  of  thought,  to  men  of  manual  toil 
and  men  of  intellectual  study,  to  the  cool  and 
tranquil  philosopher,  the  patient  historian,  and 
the  imaginative  and  ardent  poet,  the  throne  of 
grace  brings  substantially  the  same  consolations, 
and  calls  forth  the  same  warm  emotions  of  grate- 
ful and  adoring  love,  melting  penitence,  and  im- 
plicit faith. 

The  duty  of  prayer  is  itself  a  delightful 
duty.  It  ordinarily  presents  the  most  lovely 
assemblage  of  those  spiritual  graces,  and  those 
intellectual  perceptions  and  moral  qualities  of 
soul,  in  which  true  religion  has  been  universally 

2 


26  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


found  to  exist.  There  is  no  sweeter  assemblage 
of  gracious  affections  ever  presented  to  that  all- 
seeing  eye  which  looketh  on  the  heart,  and  of 
which  the  renewed  nature  of  man  is  conscious. 
And  for  this  reason  it  presents  the  most  lovely 
and  most  enviable  assemblage  of  spiritual  joys. 
If  there  is  true  blessedness  anywhere,  it  is  in 
the  indulgence  of  such  affections.  They  give 
pleasure  to  the  mind;  they  are  happy  feelings 
so  long  as  they  exist,  and  afford  the  purest,  the 
highest  satisfaction  of  which  sinful  man  is  capa- 
ble. There  is  additional  joy,  too,  in  the  discov- 
ery of  them ;  for  though  all  may  not  be  alike 
conscious  of  them,  nor  the  same  persons  equally 
conscious  at  all  times,  there  is  a  discovery  of 
them  at  the  throne  of  grace  which  is  ordinarily 
made  only  there. 

If  there  are  good  men  who  do  not  always 
enjoy  the  delightful  conviction  of  their  own 
gracious  state  in  prayer,  there  are  none  who 
do  not  sometimes  there  enjoy  it.  No  man 
should  depreciate  it  because  he  cannot  come 
so  near  the  throne  as  Abraham  came ;  or  be- 
cause he  cannot  converse  with  God  face  to 
face,  as  Moses  did ;  or  because  he  cannot,  like 
John,  lean  on  the  bosom  of  his  Divine  Lord ;  or 
because  he  may  not,  like  Paul,  be  caught  up 
into  the  third  heavens.  It  is  proof  of  the  reality 
of  his  faith,  if  he  may  there  but  lament  its  weak- 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS  ON  PRAYER.       27 


ness.  And  if  it  is  delightful  to  feel  gracious  af- 
fections at  the  throne  of  heaven's  mercy;  if  it 
is  delightful  to  be  conscious  of  them ;  still  more 
delightful  is  it  to  express  them.  It  were  bond- 
age and  misery  to  express  them  unfelt ;  but  to 
feel  and  express  them,  to  be  conscious  of  them 
and  offer  them  to  God,  to  make  the  offering  in 
the  name  and  on  the  merits  of  the  Great  Aton- 
ing High  Priest,  poor  and  humble  as  the  offering 
is,  it  is  itself  adapted  to  gratify  and  invigorate 
these  affections  themselves,  to  increase  and  ac- 
cumulate them.  It  is  thus  they  become  the  con- 
secrated conductors  of  spiritual  blessings  from 
God's  high  throne  to  many  an  otherwise  de- 
pressed and  mourning  spirit  on  this  low  earth. 

Secrets  may  be  committed  to  God  that  cannot 
be  committed  to  another.  It  is  relief  which  the 
world  knows  not  of,  if  but  to  spread  before  Him 
the  secret  wants  of  the  soul ;  to  tell  them  one 
by  one ;  to  tell  them  all.  The  conscience, 
wounded  by  a  sense  of  sin,  finds  healing  there. 
Want  there  finds  supply ;  distrust  finds  confi- 
dence, and  depression  praise.  Ignorance  is  en- 
lightened there  ;  poverty  is  enriched,  and  weak- 
ness becomes  strong.  Darkness  is  there  dissi- 
pated, and  trembling  hopes  encouraged.  The 
bruised  reed  is  not  broken  there,  nor  is  the 
smoking  flax  quenched.  Grace  there  cherishes 
what  it  bestows,  and  completes  what  it  begins. 


28  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


Spiritual  enemies  are  there  disarmed,  or  if  not 
disarmed,  there  is  the  armor  for  renewed  and 
successful  conflict.  Not  like  angels'  visits,  that 
are  few  and  far  betw^een,  the  promises  there 
habitually  visit  and  refresh  the  soul,  cheer  its 
gloom,  and  comfort  it  when  it  is  weary. 

There  are  no  broken  cisterns  at  the  mercy 
seat ;  it  is  all  a  fountain  of  living  water,  where 
streams  flow  from  it,  without  which  this  earth 
were  a  desert.  They  who  are  most  engaged 
in  the  duty  of  prayer,  have  tasted  most  of  its 
consolations.  In  the  hour  of  trouble  especially, 
it  brings  the  soul  near  to  the  only  source  of 
comfort.  That  man  is  truly  wretched,  who, 
when  earthly  enjoyments  fail,  has  no  other  to 
which  he  can  resort;  while  he  who  can  come 
to  the  footstool  of  God's  mercy  is  never  wretch- 
ed. It  is  no  barren  land,  but  one  where  the 
heavens  are  opened,  and  waters  are  poured 
upon  him  that  is  thirsty,  and  floods  upon  the  dry 
ground.  It  is  no  place  of  storms  and  tempest; 
but  a  hiding  from  the  storm,  and  from  the  tem- 
pest a  safe  covering.  The  region  is  pure,  be- 
cause it  is  elevated ;  it  is  quiet  and  serene, 
where  faith,  soaring  in  its  flight,  looks  down 
upon  earth  aud  upward  toward  heaven.  It  is  the 
sanctuary  of  God  and  where  angels  dwell.  It  is 
the  rest  of  the  soul.  Ten  thousand  times  ten 
thousand  tongues,  in  approaching  it,  have  given 


GENERAL  OBSERVATIONS  ON  PRAYER.       29 


utterance  to  the  thought,  "  Return  to  thy  rest,  O 
my  soul,  for  the  Lord  hath  dealt  bountifully  with 
thee  !"  Like  the  disciples  on  the  Mount  of  Trans- 
figuration, they  have  often  exclaimed,  "  Lord,  it 
is  good  to  be  here  !" 

If  the  reader  is  living  in  the  neglect  of 
prayer,  he  knows  not  his  loss — he  knows  not 
his  danger.  Many  a  man  w  hose  bosom  is  not  a 
stranger  to  hope  in  God's  mercy,  can  say,  But 
for  this  one  privilege,  I  should  long  ago  have 
perished,  and  gone  down  to  the  sides  of  the  pit ! 
Men  know  not  the  power  of  the  sin  that  dwell- 
eth  in  them  w^ho  neglect  to  pray.  Be  admon- 
ished, O  ye  thoughtless  ones,  who  "  restrain 
prayer  before  God  !"  "  Their  Rock  is  not  as 
our  Rock ;  even  our  enemies  themselves  being 
judges."  Men  may  have  resources  that  are  out 
of  God ;  but  they  lean  upon  the  same  broken 
reeds  w  hich  have  pierced  others  through  with 
many  sorrows.  Everything  else  will  deceive 
you ;  they  are  "  lying  vanities,  and  cannot 
profit."  They  are  snares,  and  accomplish  noth- 
ing more  certainly  than  entice  the  soul  away 
from  God,- and  deceive  it  to  its  undoing. 

Be  ye  admonished  also,  who  are  careless  and 
remiss  in  the  exercise  of  prayer.  However  dis- 
satisfied you  may  be  w4th  yourselves  in  this  ex- 
ercise, and  however  little  you  may  have  of  the 
gift  of  prayer,  "  be  faithful  in   that   which   is 


I 


30  THE    MERCY   SEAT. 


least."  However  little  comfort  you  have  in  it, 
without  it  you  will  be  left  to  a  far  more  melan- 
choly abandonment.  Though  your  prayers  may 
seem  not  to  be  answered,  it  is  no  proof  that 
they  are  not  answered,  because  it  is  not  in  the 
time  and  way  you  prescribe.  The  old  En- 
emy tempts  you  when  you  little  think  that  he 
is  tempting  you;  and  God  is  teaching  you, 
when  you  yourself  are  not  always  conscious  of 
his  teaching.  Prayer  is  the  proper  business  of 
a  man  who  is  a  sinner.  He  will  never  know 
how  to  live,  nor  how  to  die,  if  he  is  not  a  man 
of  prayer.  God  giveth  liberally ;  he  giveth 
without  upbraiding.  He  is  as  free  to  give  the 
best  gifts,  as  the  meanest;  and  to  the  most 
needy,  as  to  the  least  needy.  He  has  no  par- 
don for  the  sinless,  no  wisdom  for  the  wise,  no 
courage  for  the  resolute,  no  strength  for  the 
strong,  no  hope  for  the  presumptuous.  "  To 
this  man,"  says  he,  "  will  I  look,  even  to  him 
that  is  of  a  poor  and  contrite  spirit,  and  that 
trembleth  at  my  word."  "  This  poor  man  cried, 
and  the  Lord  heard,  and  saved  him  out  of  all 
his  troubles."  "  When  the  poor  and  needy 
seek  water,  and  there  is  none,  and  their  tongue 
faileth  for  thirst ;  I  the  Lord  will  hear  them,  J 
the  God  of  Israel  will  not  forsake  them." 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  INSTRUCTIONS  OP  THE  BIBLE  AS  TO  THE  MATTER 
AND  MANNER  OP  PRAYER. 

The  incident  is  an  interesting,  and  even  a 
most  beautiful  one,  which  led  the  disciples  of 
Christ  to  request  him  to  "  teach  them  to  pray." 
He  himself  had  been  praying ;  there  was  a  sim- 
plicity, a  propriety,  a  comprehensiveness,  a  fer- 
vor and  spirituality  in  his  prayer,  that  so  in- 
structed and  affected  them,  that  they  desired  to 
sit  at  his  feet,  if  it  were  but  to  learn  how  to 
pray.  "  And  it  came  to  pass,  that  as  he  w  as 
praying  in  a  certain  place,  when  he  ceased,  one, 
of  his  disciples  said  unto  him,  Lord,  teach  us 
how  to  pray,  as  John  also  taught  his  disciples." 
Every  Christian  has  an  interest  in  knowing  how 
the  Saviour  would  pray.  The  best  of  men 
need  direction  in  prayer.  Who  may  not  adopt 
the  language,  "  Teach  us  what  we  shall  say 
unto  him  :  for  we  cannot  order  our  speech  by 
reason  of  darkness  ?" 

How  then  shall  we  be  instructed  in  the  mat- 


J! 


32  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


ter  and  manner  of  prayer  ?  how  shall  an  igno- 
rant and  guilty  creature  learn  to  .address  him- 
self to  the  great  Creator,  who  is  God  over  all, 
blessed  forever  ?  The  Bible  is  a  sufficient  rule 
of  conduct  in  all  things  pertaining  to  life  and 
godliness.  The  subject  matter  for  prayer  is  to 
be  found  in  the  word  of  God.  There  is  not 
one  of  its  doctrines,  in  all  their  richness  and  va- 
riety, that  does  not  contain  truths  which  the 
lips  of  prayer  may  make  use  of,  and  turn  to  good 
account  at  the  throne  of  grace.  What  God  is, 
what  he  has  done,  and  what  he  has  purposed 
and  is  disposed  to  do ;  what  we  are,  and  what 
we  need,  are  not  less  guides  in  prayer,  than 
they  are  principles  of  truth.  "  He  that  cometli 
to  God  must  believe  that  he  is,  and  that  he  is 
the  rewarder  of  them  that  diligently  seek  him." 
His  love  to  the  world  in  giving  his  Son  to  die, 
the  condescension  of  his  Son  in  laying  down 
his  life  as  a  sacrifice  for  sin,  and  the  work  of 
the  Holy  Spirit  in  applying  the  truths  of  the 
gospel  to  the  soul,  furnish  not  only  the  appropri- 
ate, but  the  indispensable  aliment  to  the  spirit 
of  supplication.  "  How  shall  they  call  on  him 
in  whom  they  have  not  believed  .?"  The  point  is 
too  plain  to  require  either  illustration,  or  proof, 
that  the  mind  must  be  furnished  with  the  truth 
of  God,  in  order  to  be  furnished  with  matter  for 
prayer.     Nor  need  we  any  more  painful  convic- 


THE  MATTER  AND   MANNER  OP  PRAYER.  33 


tion  of  this,  than  the  absolute  sterility  and 
barrenness  of  thought,  and  worse  than  chilling 
coldness  of  those  prayers,  which  it  may  have 
been  our  unhappiness  to  listen  to  from  men  who 
deny  the  essential  truths  of  Christianity.  Soc- 
rates, or  Seneca,  dwelling  on  the  barren  truths 
of  Natural  Religion,  would  have  offered  a  richer 
prayer  to  the  "Unknown  God,"  than  I  have 
heard  from  the  hesitating  and  embarrassed  lips 
of  an  unchristian  ministry. 

The  precepts  of  the  Bible  also  teach  us  how 
to  pray.  They  describe  the  spirit  of  prayer ; 
while  they  teach  us  what  graces  to  ask  for,  and 
for  what  duties  we  need  strength. 

The  promises  of  the  Bible  are  revealed  for 
our  instruction  and  encouragement  in  prayer. 
They  teach  us  what  blessings  God  is  willing  to 
bestow,  and  how  willing  he  is  to  bestow  them. 
They  are  "  exceedingly  great  and  precious ;" 
they  are  wonderfully  various,  adapted  to  all 
cases  of  want,  and  all  the  varieties  of  Christian 
experience.  They  are  promises  for  health, 
strength,  food  and  raiment ;  they  are  promises 
of  peace,  safety,  success,  courage,  comfort. 
They  are  adapted  to  seasons  of  temptation, 
sickness,  poverty,  persecution,  calumny,  dark- 
ness, and  fear.  They  are  promises  of  light,  of 
regeneration,  of  repentance,  of  faith,  of  peace, 
of  joy,  and  of  the   indwelling  witness  of  the 

2* 


34  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


Holy  Spirit,  They  are'  promises  of  obedience, 
of  perseverance  in  holiness,  of  the  coming  of 
God's  Kingdom  on  the  earth,  of  calmness  and 
hope  in  death,  and  of  eternal  glory.  Nor  is 
there  one  of  them  that  does  not  give  a  fresh  im- 
pulse to  the  soul  that  wrestles  at  the  throne, 
and  that  may  not  be  used  as  an  argument  in 
prayer. 

The  threatenings  of  the  Bible  teach  us  what 
w^e  have  reason  to  fear  and  deprecate  ;  while 
the  very  sins  that  are  there  recorded  teach 
what  we  should  pray  against  and  deplore.  "AH 
these  things,"  says  the  Apostle,  "  happened 
unto  them  for  ensamples ;  and  they  were  written 
for  our  admonition  upon  whom  the  ends  of  the 
world  are  come." 

God  has  also  recorded  a  multitude  o^  facts 
in  his  word,  that  are  comments  upon  its  truths, 
its  promises,  and  its  threatenings,  of  which  he 
condescends  to  permit  his  people  to  remind  him, 
and  which  furnish  them  with  powerful  consid- 
erations in  pleading  at  his  mercy  seat.  They 
are  facts  which  belong  to  the  history  of  his  deal- 
ings both  with  good  and  bad  men,  with  nations 
and  individuals,  with  the  church  and  the  world. 

There  are  instances  of  .prayer,  too,  there  re- 
corded, w  hich  show  us  its  spirit,  its  comprehen- 
siveness, its  appropriateness  to  times,  and  places, 
and  circumstance  and  men,  as  well  as  its  fruit 


THE  MATTER  AND  MANNER  OF  PRAYER.     35 


and  power;  and  which  show  us  for  what  it  is  to 
be  offered,  and  God's  readiness  to  hear  and 
answer.  The  Bible  tells  of  Moses,  of  Elias,  of 
Daniel,  of  Job,  who  "set  their  face  to  seek  the 
Lord  God  by  prayer  and  supplication."  God 
has  there  recorded  also  a  great  variety  of  the 
experience  of  his  people,  and  of  his  own  conduct 
toward  them,  and  of  their  supplications  under 
the  dealings  of  his  hand.  Of  all  the  books  in 
the  Bible,  the  book  of  Psalms  is  the  one  which 
is  fitted  to  teach  men  hovv  to  pray,  and  how 
they  do  pray  when  influenced  by  his  Spirit.  In 
this  book  the  Spirit  of  God  has  delineated  his 
own  operations  on  the  hearts  of  his  people. 
The  book,  generally,  is  nothing  more  nor  less 
than  a  diagram  of  a  good  man's  heart — "  the 
inside  section  of  a  believer's  soul." 

More  than  this;  the  Bible  teaches  us  where 
to  go  for  assistance  in  prayer.  "  For  through 
him,  we  have  access  by  one  spirit  unto  the  Fa- 
ther." In  every  act  of  true  devotion,  there  is  a 
concurrence  of  the  Spirit's  influence.  No  man 
is  wise  enough  or  holy  enough,  or  sufiiciently 
acquainted  with  his  own  w^ants,  or  with  the 
mind  and  will  of  God  to  pray  as  he  ought 
to  pray,  unless  directed  and  assisted  by  the 
Spirit  of  God.  With  the  most  guileless  sincer- 
ity, Apostles  themselves  acknowledge,  "  For 
tve  know  not  what  we  should  pray  for  as  we 


36  THE  MERCY    SEAT. 


ought ;  but  the  Spirit  itself  maketh  intercession 
for  us  with  groanings  that  cannot  be  uttered. 
And  he  that  searcheth  the  heart,  knoweth  the 
mind  of  the  Spirit,  because  he  maketh  interces- 
sion for  the  saints  according  to  the  will  of  God." 
Men  are  ignorant,  forgetful  and  erring ;  but  the 
Spirit  "  helpeth  their  infirmities,"  by  enlighten- 
ing their  understandings,  assisting  their  memo- 
ries, warming  their  hearts,  and  directing  their 
desires  in  prayer  after  right  objects.  It  is  no 
marvel  that  men  who  pray  without  feeling  their 
dependence  on  God's  Spirit,  and  seeking  his  aid, 
offer  disconnected  prayers,  random  prayers,  and 
prayers  that  have  no  object.  Prayers  they  may 
be  that  are  fluent,  but  they  mean  nothing — 
wordy  prayers,  destitute  of  thought  and  emo- 
tion, because  those  who  offer  them  have  forgot- 
ten that  "  they  are  not  sufficient  of  themselves 
to  think  anything  of  themselves."  It  is  the 
work  of  the  Spirit  to  teach  men  to  pray.  The 
heart  and  the  tongue  must  be  under  his  influ- 
ence. "  Open  thou  my  lips,  and  my  mouth  shall 
show  forth  thy  praise,"  The  prayer  that  reaches 
heaven  must  come  from  heaven.  It  is  "  the  Com- 
forter" alone  who  imparts  the  spirit  of  adoption, 
whereby  we  say  "  Abba,  Father."  *'  The  prep- 
aration of  the  heart  in  man,  and  the  answer  of 
the  tongue,  is  of  the  Lord."  The  Spirit  of  God 
himself  is  called  "  The  Spirit  of  supplication." 


THE   MATTER  AND  MANNER  OF  PRAYER.  37 


It  is  he  that  prays  in  the  people  of  God;  and 
when  he  teaches  them  to  pray,  it  is  "  with  all 
prayer  and  supplication  in  the  Spirit." 

On  every  page  of  the  Bible  there  is  matter  for 
prayer ;  and  he  who  would  pray  with  intelli- 
gence and  with  fervor,  must  study  his  Bible. 
The  best  instruction  we  can  give  on  this  sub- 
ject is  to  refer  you  to  the  Bible.  Let  the  Spirit 
of  God  impress  you  with  a  sense  of  your  wants, 
and  direct  your  desires.  Let  your  mind  be 
richly  furnished  with  all  God's  truth,  and  let 
your  bosom  be  filled  with  devotional  emotions, 
and  then  freely  utter  your  requests  before  God. 
There  is  thought  in  prayer ;  strong  thought,  and 
often  close,  compact,  and  connected  thought. 
There  is  emotion,  too,  heavenly  emotion.  There  is 
memory,  too,  in  prayer ;  and  there  is  conscience 
and  even  imagination.  There  is  the  argument 
of  Moses  and  the  piety  of  Isaiah  and  David  in 
prayer ;  and  the  fittest  combination  of  them  all, 
directed  by  God's  Spirit,  uttered  with  simplicity 
and  fervor,  and  with  no  burdensome  restrictions 
upon  the  heart,  constitutes  the  sweetest,  hum- 
blest, most  grateful  and  heavenly  devotion.  To 
aim  at  eloquence  in  prayer,  is  of  all  abomina- 
tions one  of  the  greatest ;  to  affect  singularity 
in  it,  the  strangest  of  all  affectations.  There  is 
a  copiousness  of  diction  in  the  prayers  of  some 
Christians,  which  is  not  found   in  others ;  and 


38  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


there  is  an  unusual  copiousness  in  the  same 
Christian  at  different  seasons  and  under  the 
power  of  different  thoughts  and  emotions.  All 
this  is  natural.  "  There  is  a  diversity  of  gifts,  but 
the  same  spirit." 

But  this  is  not  all  the  instruction  the  Bible 
gives  in  relation  to  the  matter  and  manner  of 
prayer.  While  it  contains  the  principles  by 
which  we  are  to  apply  the  matter  of  prayer, 
there  is  a  special  rule  of  direction,  in  w^hat  is 
commonly  called  The  Lotd's  Prayer.  I  cannot 
help  thinking  it  is  a  mistake  to  call  it  so,  be- 
cause it  is  a  prayer  which  our  Lord  himself 
could  not  use  ;  it  contains  confessions  of  sin 
which  he  could  not  make.  If  there  be  a  prayer 
in  the  Bible  which  may  be  properly  called  the 
Lord's  Prayer,  it  is  contained  in  the  ITth  of 
John ;  a  prayer  which  no  other  than  he  could 
ever  offer.  This  formula,  commonly  called  the 
Lord's  Prayer,  contains  the  substance  of  prayer 
for  his  disciples.  In  no  other  part  of  the  Bible 
is  the  service  of  prayer  so  methodically  specified. 
It  reduces  the  matter  of  prayer  to  certain  great 
subjects  ;  under  one  or  other  of  which  all  lawful 
requests  may  be  presented.  It  is  distinguished 
for  great  tenderness,  great  sincerity,  great  sim- 
pli.city  and  precision,  giving  us  the  different 
heads  of  prayer,  and  at  the  same  time  giving  us 


THE   MATTER   AND   MANNER  OF  PRAYER.  39 


the  whole  range  of  the  Bible  for  matter  to  put 
under  these  heads. 

A  question  arises  here,  if  we  may  not  use  this 
form  in  our  supplications  at  the  throne  of  grace? 
Most  certainly  we  may;  most  certainly  we  do; 
most  certainly  we  ought ;  though  there  is  no 
evidence  that  we  ought  to  do  so  uniformly  and 
always.  The  Christian  ought  not  to  he  so  much 
the  enemy  of  forms,  as  to  depreciate  this  most 
beautiful  form  of  prayer ;  nor  so  much  of  a  for- 
malist, as  not  to  pray  without  it.  That  we  must 
use  it  as  a  form,  not  to  depart  from,  as  if  there 
was  some  charm  in  the  words,  is  not  conceded. 

We  are  naturally  led  in  our  inquiries  on  the 
general  subject  of  prayer,  to  a  consideration  of 
the  question  of  prayiiig  with  or  without  a  'pre- 
scribed form.  There  has  been,  and  is  still,  a 
great  variance  in  the  belief  and  practice  of  pro- 
fessed Christians  in  the  manner  of  addressing 
the  throne  of  grace  in  this  particular.  Some 
churches  have  set  and  stereotyped  forms,  pre- 
scribed by  ecclesiastical  authority  even  upon 
their  Archbishops,  their  Bishops,  their  Presby- 
ters, and  their  Deacons.  It  has  never  before 
fallen  in  the  writer's  way  to  speak  extensively 
upon  this  subject;  nor  does  he  do  it  now  with- 
out some  misgivings — misgivings  not  of  truth 
and  principle,  but  misgivings  arising  from  the 
fact  that,  as  a  general  axiom,  it  is  no  part  of 


40  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


true  religion  to  find  fault  with  the  religion  of 
other  people. 

He  would  preface  what  he  is  about  to  say, 
with  a  single  remark,  and  that  is,  in  this  matter 
"  Let  every  man  be  fully  persuaded  in  his  own 
mind."  If  there  are  those  who,  from  con- 
scientious convictions  of  duty,  give  an  honest 
preference  to  forms  of  religious  worship,  they 
may  well  say  to  us,  who  honestly  differ  from 
them,  "  Who  art  thou  that  judgest  another 
man's  servant ;  to  his  own  Master  he  standeth 
or  falleth."  Since,  however,  our  own  principles 
and  practice  are  dear  to  us,  we  hope  it  will  not 
be  deemed  unfitting,  or  uncharitable,  to  advert 
to  some  of  the  considerations  by  which  they 
may  be  defended.  This  we  shall  do  without 
embarrassment,  though  without  designing  to 
give  offence  to  those  who  differ  from  us,  unless 
they  be  offended  by  God's  truth. 

Jesus  Christ  has  nowhere  authorized  a  restric- 
tion to  any  set  form  of  praijer.  The  only  pas- 
sage in  the  New  Testament  which  has  the  sem- 
blance of  this  authority,  is  the  declaration  made 
by  him  in  relation  to  what  is  called  the  Lord's 
Prayer :  "  After  this  manner  pray  ye."  Our  po- 
sition here  is,  that  the  Saviour  gave  his  disciples 
this  prayer,  not  as  a  form  in  words,  but  in  sub- 
stance and  manner.  He  does  not  say  after  these 
words ;  his  object  was  to  furnish  his  disciples 


jF^' 


THE  MATTER  AND   MANNER  OF   PRAYER.  41 


hints  on  the  subject  of  prayer ;  nor  could  they, 
from  the  nature  of  the  case,  be  entitled  to  ex- 
pect anything  more.  The  most  rigid  advocates 
of  forms  do  not  profess  to  believe  that  by  the  in- 
structions here  given,  the  Saviour  designed  to 
limit  his  church  to  these  words,  or  even  to  these 
thoughts;  because  they  themselves  have  with 
great  care  and  pains  presented  other  and  more 
amplified  forms.  To  us  it  seems  that  a  fair 
mind  must  confess  that  the  Great  Teacher  here 
designed  to  furnish  his  people  with  the  great 
outlines  of  prayer,  without  attempting  to  draw 
out  the  whole  system  of  devotion,  and  filling  up 
all  the  parts  of  it.  Men  of  prayer  will  readily 
class  these  several  topics,  and  naturally  remem- 
ber and  resort  to  them  when  they  pray.  There 
is  not  one  of  them  that  is  extraneous  and  foreign 
to  the  subject  of  prayer,  nor  any  one  of  them 
which,  when  prayer  is  offered  upon  a  large 
scale,  may  be  omitted.  The  order  is  natural, 
and  the  transition  from  one  thought  to  another 
is  such  that  it  is  not  abruptly  made ;  nor  is  the 
mind  at  all  embarrassed  in  perceiving  the  asso- 
ciation of  thought  which  connects  the  whole. 
It  covers  the  common  w  ants  of  man ;  so  far  as  it 
goes,  it  is  adapted  to  all  the  stages  of  Christian 
experience,  and  not  less  fitted  to  the  babe  in 
Christ,  than  to  those  of  mature  age. 

The    Sacred    Scriptures   nowhere    speak   of 


# 


42  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


reading  prayers,  or  make  any  allusion  to  a  Lit- 
urgy. Would  they  not  have  done  this,  if  estab- 
lished Forms  of  Prayer  were  indispensable  to 
the  prosperity  of  the  church,  or  the  comfort  and 
beauty  of  her  worship  ?  The  prayers  of  Abra- 
ham were  not  written  prayers.  Nor  was  the 
prayer  of  Eleazar  at  Haran ;  nor  the  player 
of  Jacob,  at  Peniel ;  nor  the  prayers  of  Moses 
and  Aaron  for  Egypt  and  Israel.  The  prayer  of 
Joshua  at  the  defeat  of  Ai,  the  prayer  of  Ma- 
noah,  of  Samson,  of  Hannah,  of  Samuel  at  Miz- 
peh,  of  Elijah  at  Mount  Carmel,  of  Hezekiah 
against  Sennacherib,  of  Jabez,  of  Ezra,  of  Ne- 
hemiah,  of  Job,  of  Daniel,  of  Jonah,  and  of  Ha- 
bakkuk,  were  none  of  them  dictated  by  the  pen. 
Nor  was  the  prayer  of  Zacharias,  nor  that  of 
the  Publican,  nor  that  of  the  disciples  in  any  one 
exigence  of  their  history.  The  prayers  offered 
by  the  disciples  of  Christ  subsequently  to  the 
period  when  he  thus  taught  them,  that  are  re- 
corded at  length  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles, 
grew  out  of  the  peculiar  condition  in  which 
they  were  offered,  and  were  offered  under  the 
impulse  of  their  peculiar  exigences;  yet,  in  not 
one  of  them  is  there  one  word  of  the  Lord's 
Prayer,  nor  the  remotest  allusion  to  it.  The 
prayer  of  the  Apostles  on  the  appointment  of 
Mathias  to  the  Apostleship ;  their  prayer  on 
the  release  of  Peter  and  John  from  the  Jewish 


THE  MATTER  AND   MANNER   OF   PRAYER.  43 


Council ;  and  Paul's  noble  supplication,  as  re- 
corded in  the  third  chapter  of  his  Epistle  to  the 
Ephesians,  have  not  the  slightest  reference  to 
the  Lord's  Prayer,  but  in  method  and  thought 
are  entirely  different  from  it  throughout.  They 
were  prayers  for  special  occasions,  called  for  by 
the  occasion  itself,  offered  without  the  least  re- 
striction by  this  prescribed  form,  and  under  cir- 
cumstances in  which  this  form  of  prayer  would 
have  been  altogether  inappropriate.  There  are 
also  instructions  on  the  subject  of  prayer  scat- 
tered throughout  the  Epistles,  in  addition  to 
those  given  in  the  Lord's  Prayer,  and  which 
this  form  does  not  include.  We  are  taught  to 
offer  all  our  supplications  "  in  the  name  of 
Christ,"  which  this  prayer  says  nothing  about ; 
evidently  teaching  us  that  there  are  other  and 
superadded  revelations  on  this  subject,  and  that 
this  form,  excellent  as  it  is,  is  not  the  sole  di- 
rectory. Jesus  Christ,  therefore,  has  nowhere 
authorized  a  restriction  to  any  set  form  of  prayer. 
In  the  next  place,  forms  of  prayer  invert  the 
order  of  prayer ;  they  mahe  the  words  lead  the 
heart,  and  not  the  heart  the  words.  True  prayer 
flows  from  the  heart ;  the  heart  is  the  seat  of 
supplication.  This  truth  is,  indeed,  so  obvious 
that  the  best  writers  who  are  the  strenuous  ad- 
vocates of  forms,  contend  for  them  only  as  aids 
to  the  worship  of  the  heart.     But  in  doing  tliis. 


44  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


they  do  no  more,  even  by  their  own  showing, 
than  make  the  lips  affect  the  heart;  whereas, 
the  nature  of  the  case,  the  meaning  of  the  terms, 
and  the  uniform  teachings  of  God's  word,  make 
the  heart  in  prayer  affect  the  lips.  It  is  in 
prayer  as  it  is  in  speaking,  before  a  man  speaks 
he  must  have  something  to  say,  his  thoughts 
must  first  give  an  impulse  to  his  tongue.  Before 
he  prays,  he  must  have  thoughts  and  emotions 
•to  utter;  his  heart  must  move  first,  his  lips  af- 
terwards. This  is  the  true  order  of  prayer. 
God  first  gives  the  heart  to  pray,  and  then  the 
words ;  he  does  not  give  the  words  first,  and 
afterwards  the  heart.  In  every  instance,  in  the 
beginning,  during  the  progress,  and  at  the  close 
of  prayer,  the  heart  goes  before  the  lips,  and 
not  the  lips  before  the  heart.  A  man's  mind 
and  affections  may  be  excited  by  the  sound  of 
his  own  voice  in  prayer,  and  one  sentence  of 
supplication  may  thus  prepare  the  way  for  an- 
other ;  but  the  incitement  is  produced  by  the 
utterance  of  thoughts  and  emotions  already  ex- 
isting within  his  own  mind.  They  are  not  vain 
words  which  move  him,  but  thought  acting  upon 
thought,  emotion  upon  emotion,  each  and  every 
one  of  them  taking  precedence  of  the  utterance 
of  his  lips.  No  man  begins  prayer  with  mere 
words,  as  forms  teach  him  to  do.  We  do  not 
deny  but  the  heart  may  follow  the  w^ords,  and 


THE   MATTER  AND   MANNER  OF   PRAYER.  45 


only  affirm  the  words  ought  to  follow  the  heart. 
When  we  read  in  the  Scriptures  of  men  "  stir- 
ring up  themselves  to  take  hold  on  God,"  who 
does  not  see  that  this  is  an  intellectual  and  spir- 
itual stirring  up,  and  not  a  rhetorical  effort  ?  It 
is  not  an  effort  of  the  lips  to  affect  the  heart,  but 
an  effort  of  the  heart  to  affect  the  lips.  And 
hence  it  is  that  an  habitual  reliance  upon  forms 
of  prayer  encourages  spiritual  sloth,  and  an  idle 
mind,  and  tempts  men  who  read  or  repeat  a 
prayer,  to  be  careless  of  self-examination,  and 
too  little  solicitous  of  exciting  grace  in  the  heart 
to  pray.  We  do  not  say  men  are  hypocrites 
whose  religious  worship  is  restricted  by  forms; 
on  the  other  hand,  we  have  no  doubt  of  the 
piety  of  many  of  them ;  w  hile  of  the  piety  of 
not  a  few,  we  have  evidence  of  the  most  con- 
vincing and  delightful  kind.  But  this  we  say, 
that  the  natural  tendency  of  their  system  is 
to  encourage  hypocrisy.  There  may  be  hyp- 
ocrites who  pray  without  a  form ;  but  they  are 
more  exposed  to  be  hypocrites  who  are  indu- 
ced to  believe  that  saying  the  prescribed  words 
of  prayer  is  prayer. 

With  regard  to  secret  prayer,  the  true  and  nat- 
ural idea  of  it  is,  that  it  is  a  man's  own  mind  and 
heart  that  prays ;  while  the  one  who  uses  the 
prayers  that  are  made  for  him  by  another, 
makes  use  of  the  mind  and  heart  of  another, 


46  THE   MERCY   SEAT, 


and  not  his  own.  There  is  danger  of  hypoc- 
risy, and  still  more  of  honest  self-deception, 
everywhere  ;  but  the  danger  is  greatly  increased 
where  the  words  professedly  lead  the  heart,  and 
not  the  heart  the  words.  We  judge  not  other 
men ;  we  know  not  the  influence  of  habit  on 
their  own  minds;  but  to  us  it  appears  a  very 
strange  thing  that  a  Christian  man,  much  more 
a  Christian  minister,  should  wish  to  find  his 
prayers  written  in  a  book. 

Another  objection  to  forms  is,  that  they  check 
the  teachings  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  If  what  has 
been  said  in  relation  to  the  work  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  in  prayer,  in  a  previous  paragraph,  be 
true,  ^ve  know  not  how  to  get  over  this  diffi- 
culty ;  it  is  absolutely  fatal  to  the  whole  system 
of  forms  of  prayer,  save  in  those  cases  where 
they  are  necessarily  imposed  as  leading-strings 
in  childhood  and  ignorance.  God  has  promised 
to  give  the  spirit  of  prayer  and  supplication. 
For  what  ?  To  indite  our  own  petitions  at  his 
throne.  Does  the  man  need  this  influence  who 
finds  them  already  indited  in  a  book  ?  Is  it 
said,  he  needs  this  influence  to  enable  him  to 
enter  into  the  import  of  the  prescribed  form? 
It  is  nowhere  promised  for  this  purpose.  He 
has  no  certain  evidence  that  the  original  authors 
of  the  form  he  uses  were  influenced  by  the  Spirit 
of  God ;  for  while  God  has  promised  to  give  the 


THE  MATTER   AND   MANNER  OP   PRAYER.  47 


Spirit  of  prayer  to  those  who  pray,  he  has  no- 
where promised  to  give  his  Spirit  to  any  man, 
or  any  set  of  men,  to  enable  them  to  WTite  pray- 
ers for  other  people.  And  what  is  still  more  to 
our  purpose,  the  Apostle  Paul,  in  giving  an  ac- 
count of  the  work  of  the  Spirit  on  the  Christian's 
heart  in  prayer,  says,  "  Likewise  the  Spirit  also 
helpeth  our  infirmities,  ybr  we  know  not  what  we 
should  pray  for  as  we  ought  J'  Now  if  we  use  pray- 
ers that  are  made  for  us,  it  is  not  true  tiiat  we 
do  not  know  what  we  should  pray  for  as  we 
ought.  We  do  know,  because  we  have  all  our 
requests  before  us  in  the  book.  Either  we  do 
know,  or  we  do  not.  Jf  we  do  not,  then  in 
using  forms,  our  own  requevSts  are  not  offered. 
If  we  do,  the  Apostle  is  in  a  sad  mistake.  But 
the  mistake  is  not  Paul's ;  it  is  in  the  book  of 
prayer,  which  professes  to  know  what  we  should 
pray  for  as  we  ought,  which  the  Spirit  of  God 
says  we  do  not  know,  and  which  he  himself 
teaches  us  when  we  ourselves  pray. 

Retired,  and  sometimes  sweet  and  awful,  are 
the  secrets  between  the  soul  of  man  and  God. 
"  What  man  knoweth  the  things  of  a  man,  save 
the  spirit  of  a  man  which  is  in  him  ?"  And  who 
searclies  and  develops  them  in  prayer,  but  the 
Spirit  of  God,  whose  influence  forms  of  prayer 
supersede,  and  who  himself  alone  "  searcheth 
the  deep  things  of  God  ?" 


r 


48  THE  MERCY   SEAT, 


Still  another  objection  to  forms  of  prayer  is, 
that  no  set  of  praijers  is,  or  ever  can  be,  adequate 
to  the  necessities  of  the  church.  Who  does  not  see, 
that  however  excellent  any  Liturgy  may  be,  and 
however  great  the  variety  of  its  forms,  it  is  a 
simple  impossibility,  without  the  aid  of  a  new 
revelation,  and  without  the  spirit  of  prophecy, 
to  form  a  set  of  prayers  that  shall  suit  a  church 
at  any  period  of  time  hereafter  ?  Hence  we  find 
that  new  editions  of  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer 
are  continually  making  their  appearance.  By 
common  consent  and  authority  it  has  been  al- 
tered, abridged,  enlarged,  amended,  and  other- 
wise disposed  of  according  to  the  various  exi- 
gencies of  times  and  occasions.  The  Church  of 
England  has,  in  the  reign  of  several  princes, 
since  the  first  compiling  of  her  Liturgy  in  the 
time  of  Edward  the  Sixth,  not  only  made  unes- 
sential alterations,  but  alterations  in  the  main 
body  and  essential  parts  of  it.  And  she  must  do 
so  again,  if  she  cuts  off  occasion  of  complaint  in 
her  own  members. 

Yet  with  all  this  liberty,  no  form  can  meet 
their  exigencies.  When  events  take  place  in 
the  providence  of  God,  for  which  the  prescribed 
forms  of  prayer  furnish  no  appropriate  and  ade- 
quate supply,  the  whole  church  must  stand  still, 
and  wait  until  the  constituted  authorities  pre- 
pare a  new  form  of  prayer,  and  publicly  author- 


THE  MATTER  AND  MANNER  OF  PRAYER.  49 


ize  the  use  of  it.  Not  one,  even  of  her  ministers 
or  bishops,  may  go  beyond  the  prayer  written  in 
his  book,  however  unexpected  and  extraordinary, 
and  urgent  the  demand  may  be  for  some  marked 
and  strong  peculiarity  in  their  devotions. 

If  from  public  and  social  prayer,  we  go  to  the 
devotions  of  the  family  and  the  closet,  the  em- 
barrassment is  increased  a  thousand-fold.  Every 
family,  and  every  individual  has  mercies  of  its 
own  to  be  thankful  for,  sins  of  its  own  to  con- 
fess, wants  to  be  presented  before  God,  which 
no  prescribed  form  can  reach  ;  and  to  be  limited 
by  such  a  form  is  an  encroachment  upon  Chris- 
tian liberty  and  privilege,  to  which  no  heart,  no 
conscience  ought  to  be  subjected.  The  primi- 
tive Christians  and  churches  did  not  know  any- 
thing of  such  a  restriction;  nor  would  they  have 
submitted  to  such  bondage,  "  no  not  for  an  hour." 
And  hence  no  small  part  of  the  devotions  of  the 
Papal  and  Episcopal  churches,  consists  of  "vain 
repetitions,"  of  disjointed  prayers,  of  "  shreds 
and  fragments"  of  prayer,  which  have  no  con- 
nection with  each  other,  and  which  are  far  from 
presenting  anything  like  a  continuous  address 
to  the  throne  of  grace. 

We  may  add  that  forms  of  prayer  are  in  their 

nature  absurd  and  preposterous.     The  spirit  of 

prayer  never  requires  men  to  pray  in  any  set 

form  of  words.     Its  emotions  are  so  various  that 

3 


60  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


it  must  necessarily  seek  its  own  \vtiy  of  express- 
ing them;  they  are  often  full,  and  such  as  can- 
not be  suppressed,  but  must  give  themselves 
utterance  in  a  way  adapted  to  their  own  strength 
and  tenderness.  A  hungry  beggar  does  not 
ask  alms,  nor  a  drowning  man  cry  for  relief 
only  by  a  set  form.  The  idea  w^ere  preposter- 
ous. No  more  does  a  perishing  sinner  plead  for 
mercy  and  grace  to  help  in  the  time  of  need  by 
a  set  form.  The  great  controversy  between  God 
and  his  visible  people,  in  every  age,  has  arisen 
from  the  strong  tendency  of  the  human  heart  to 
satisfy  itself  with  mere  forms.  It  relates  to  a 
spiritual  religion  on  the  one  hand,  and  a  formal 
religion  on  the  other.  From  the  corrupt  state 
of  the  church  in  the  days  of  the  prophet  Isaiah, 
down  to  the  Pharisaic  formality,  which  w^as  so 
severely  rebuked  by  the  Saviour,  and  from  that 
time  to  the  present,  this  is  the  great  subject  mat- 
ter of  controversy.  Is  it  not  safe  to  be  on  the 
right  side  of  this  great  question  ? 

Such  are  our  objections  to  Forms  of  Prayer. 
Let  us  not,  however,  do  the  injustice  to  advert 
exclusively  to  the  considerations  against  them, 
but  give  all  due  weight  to  the  considerations 
which  have  been  suggested  in  their  favor. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  example  of  the  prim- 
itive Christians  is  in  favor  of  Forms.  Much  has 
been  written  to  prove  the  antiquity  of  Liturgies, 


THE   MATTER  AND   MANNER  OF  PRAYER,  51 


and  Bishop  Bull  has  strongly  urged  the  proba- 
bility of  their  being  of  Apostolic  origin.  The 
Church  of  England  has  preserved  in  her  Book 
of  Common  Prayer  some  prayers  of  ancient 
date,  to  which  she  attaches  great  importance 
from  their  mere  antiquity.  But  were  the  ex- 
ample of  Christians,  even  from  the  days  of  the 
Apostles  to  the  present  hour,  in  favor  of  Forms, 
so  long  as  there  is  no  warrant  for  them  in  the 
word  of  God,  it  lays  no  obligation  on  our  con- 
sciences. The  statement  itself,  however,  that 
the  example  of  the  primitive  Christians  is  in  favor 
of  Forms,  is  not  true.  The  posture  of  the  prim- 
itive Christians  in  prayer  was  such  as  to  render 
it  impossible  to  read  prayers.  They  stood  with 
their  arms  crossed  on  their  breasts,  their  heads 
back,  and  their  eyes  often  closed.  It  is  confi- 
dently asserted  by  those  who  have  made  close 
search,  that  there  is  not  such  an  expression  as 
"  reading  prayers,"  to  be  found  in  the  history 
of  the  first  four  centuries.  "  The  most  eminent 
ritualist  the  Church  of  England  has  produced 
for  a  hundred  years,  confesses  that  the  public 
services  of  the  primitive  church  were  all  per- 
formed extempore,  or  memoriter,  and  that  no 
one  office  was  reduced  to  writing  until  the 
fourth  century."  After  this,  we  know  there 
were  set  forms  of  prayer ;  but  it  was  an  age  of 
remarkable  degeneracy  and  corruption ;  and  it 


52  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


was  superinduced  and  came  on  by  a  punctilious 
and  superstitious  regard  for  modes  and  forms  of 
worship.  There  is  no  fact  better  established, 
than  that  for  several  centuries  after  the  resurrec- 
tion of  Christ,  prescribed  forms  of  prayer  were 
unknown.  When  strict  inquisition  was  made  for 
"  the  books"  of  the  Christians  by  their  persecu- 
tors, it  was  a  singular  fact  that  their  Bibles  were 
demanded,  and  not  a  word  is  said  of  their 
Prayer  Books.  So  when  the  Emperor  Constan- 
tine,  in  his  zeal  for  Christianity,  directed  the 
Christians  to  be  supplied  with  the  Bible,  he 
said  not  a  word  about  Prayer  Books.  In  early 
ages,  too,  very  many  of  the  clergy,  and  not  one 
of  the  common  people,  could  read;  and  what 
good  could  Prayer  Books  do  ?  The  Christian 
families  of  that  illiterate  age  must  either  have 
worshipped  God  without  forms  of  prayer,  or  not 
worshipped  him  at  all.  We  have  also  the  ex- 
pressed testimony  of  the  early  Christian  Fathers 
on  this  subject.  "  When  Justin  Martyr  is  de- 
scribing the  worship  of  the  second  century,  he 
says,  that  the  officiating  minister  offers  up  prayer 
and  thanksgiving,  according  to  his  ability,  an 
expression  which  would  be  unmeaning  if  he 
had  read  prayers  from  a  book."  Tertullian  too, 
in  the  same  century,  says,  "  We  pray  without  a 
monitor,  because  we  pray  from  the  heart." 
In  favor  of  forms,  it  is  also  said,  that  it  is  im- 


THE   MATTER  AND   MANNER  OP   PRAYER.  53 


portant  to  have  matter  to  ponder  upon,  to  pratj 
with  intelligence.  We  have  only  to  reply,  most 
certainly  it  is  so;  but  then  there  is  more  matter 
in  the  Bible  than  in  a  Book  of  Common  Prayer. 
It  is  further  urged,  and  we  confess  the  objec- 
tion has  some  weight,  that  in  extempore  prayers, 
too  much  latitude  is  giveti  to  the  speaker — that,  on 
the  one  hand,  his  prayers  may  often  he  barren  and 
dry  ;  and  on  the  other,  they  may  be  redundant,  and 
sometimes  filled  even  with  wild  and  extravagant 
notions.  This  is  true  ;  it  is  an  evil  to  be  guarded 
against :  and  we  have  only  to  say,  that  we  expect 
too  much,  when  we  expect  perfect  prayers  from 
imperfect  men.  And  are  there  no  such  imper- 
fections in  the  reading  of  forms  of  prayer  I  are 
they  never  recited  with  chilling  coldness  and 
school-boy  negligence  ?  In  order  to  remedy 
these  evils,  I  have  heard  them  chanted!  But 
what  would  the  Saviour  and  his  apostles  have 
thought  of  setting  their  prayers  to  music  ?  Be- 
sides, are  there  no  imperfections  in  the  forms 
themselves  ?  Is  the  extravagant  praise  so  gra- 
tuitously bestowed  upon  the  Liturgy  of  the 
Episcopal  Church,  the  praise  that  is  due  to  it? 
Does  it  insist  upon  no  arrogant  pretensions? 
does  it  inculcate  no  superstitious  rites  ?  does  it 
teach  no  errors  in  doctrine  ?  has  it  no  defects, 
and  no  redundancies ?  "I  have  no  hesita- 
tion  in   saying,"    says  the    late    Dr.    Dick,  of 


64  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


Glasgow,  "that  in  other  churches,  prayers  far 
superior  are  offered  up  every  Sabbath ;  and  I 
have  frequently  heard  a  prayer  poured  out,  by  a 
man  of  God,  with  the  assistance  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  which,  in  my  judgment,  was  more  valua- 
ble than  the  whole  of  the  Liturgy."  Carry  out 
the  principle  of  the  objection,  and  it  militates 
equally  against  the  whole  Gospel  dispensation. 
A  minister  has  the  same  liberty  in  preparing  his 
sermons,  as  in  uttering  his  prayers.  On  the 
principle  of  the  objection,  we  must  have  a  set  of 
sermons  prepared,  as  well  as  prayers.  And  the 
Church  of  England  has,  in  former  days,  acted 
upon  this  principle,  and  prepared  her  Books  of 
Homilies,  or  discourses  for  her  ministers.  But 
they  were  "days  of  ignorance,  which  God 
winked  at,"  and  which  the  church  winked  at, 
because  the  clergy  were  not  then  qualified  for 
their  office.  She  discontinues  this  latter  usage, 
because  she  has,  to  a  very  considerable  extent, 
an  intelligent  and  devout  clergy  :  and  the  rea- 
son is  equally  applicable  for  discontinuing  her 
prescribed  form  of  words  in  prayer. 

Public  prayer,  like  every  other  exercise,  is  a 
matter  of  habit,  and  grows  out  of  the  habit  of 
secret  prayer.  It  requires  a  mind  well  furnished 
with  divine  truth,  and  a  heart  that  is  right  with 
God.  Where  these  two  qualifications  are  pos- 
sessed, the  habit  of  public  prayer,  for  the  most 


THE  MATTER  AND   MANNER  OF  PRAYER:  55 


part,  makes  the  service  pleasant  and  profitable. 
There  are,  it  is  true,  mournful  exceptions  to  this 
fact  in  the  history  of  every  minister — seasons  in 
which  he  himself  feels  confounded  before  God 
and  the  people.  But  there  are  other  seasons,  in 
which  he  is  favored  of  God — seasons  gratefully 
remembered,  when  his  devotions  are  poured 
forth  from  the  fulness  of  his  heart,  and  much 
more  to  edification  than  any  set  form  of  prayer. 

Once  more,  it  is  objected  to  prayers  that  are 
not  thus  formed,  that  the  people  cannot  join  in 
them.  I  might  here  reply.  Let  the  experience 
of  the  christian  world,  who  have  never  embar- 
rassed themselves  with  forms,  answer  this  objec- 
tion. Is  it  so,  that  there  is  among  us  no  such 
thing  as  joining  in  prayer?  The  objection 
assumes  what  is  not  true  in  fact.  It  assumes, 
also,  what  is  not  true  in  the  philosophy  of  the 
human  mind,  and  that  is,  that  its  operations  are 
slow.  Men  as  easily  follow  the  suppliant  in 
prayers,  as  they  do  the  preacher  in  his  preach- 
ing. So  rapid  are  the  movements  of  the  mind, 
that  in  a  praying  assembly  there  are  hundreds 
of  digressions  from  the  prayer  that  is  put  up  by 
the  speaker,  without  the  loss  of  a  single  thought 
that  he  utters.  The  petitions  of  the  speaker 
are  made  the  petitions  of  the  hearers;  while 
every  man  of  prayer  among  them  is  secretly 
putting  up  his  own  requests,  all  the  while,  sug- 


66  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


gested  by  the  thoughts  of  the  speaker,  and  all  of 
them  ascending  as  sweet  incense  to  the  throne, 
through  the  great  High  Priest  of  their  profession, 
to  his  Father  and  their  Father,  to  his  God  and 
their  God. 

We  say  no  more;  perhaps  we  have  already 
said  too  much.  Beware  of  a  state  of  heart  in 
which  you  feel  the  want  of  a  book  to  teach  you 
to  pray.  It  may  be  advisable  in  cases  of  need, 
to  use  a  form  at  the  family  altar ;  better  pray 
with  a  form,  than  not  pray  at  all.  Yet  never 
use  a  form,  unless,  after  patient  effort,  and  long 
seeking  the  Spirit  of  God  to  teach  you  to  pray, 
you  find  that  you  cannot  do  without  it.  Trust 
no  council,  or  bishop,  or  pope,  to  make  your 
prayers  for  you.  Look  at  all  the  Bible,  and 
learn  how  to  pray.  Pray  as  you  want.  Feel 
your  w  ants,  and  then  let  your  heart  utter  them 
without  embarrassment.  When  God  says, 
"  Seek  ye  my  face,"  let  your  heart  reply,  "  Thy 
face,  O  Lord,  will  I  seek."  Alas !  that  there 
should  be  a  prayerless  heart  in  such  a  world  as 
this,  where  the  God  of  heaven  has  erected  his 
mercy  seat,  and  where  he  dwells  on  purpose  to 
hear  the  supplications  of  sinful  men  ! 


CHAPTER  III. 


GOD  A  FATHER. 


''(Dur  /ntljBr;  tnjiirli  nrt  in  WmuJ' 

It  is  said  to  have  been  a  remark  of  the  late 
Madame  De  Stael,  that  the  prayer,  of  which  this 
is  the  first  sentence,  was  itself  sufficient  proof  of 
the  truth  of  Christianity.  No  fair  mind  can  deny 
that  the  prayer  itself  is  a  remarkable  production. 
The  amount  of  truth  it  embodies,  its  high  moral- 
ity, and  deep,  touclyng  devotion  are  such,  that 
no  mere  philosopher,  or  sage,  could  have  been 
its  author. 

"Have  we  not  all  one  Father,"  saith  the 
prophet,  "  hath  not  one  God  created  us  ?"  If 
not  the  minutest,  atom  exists  without  the  first 
great  cause  ;  that  wondrous  and  complex  being, 
man,  could  never  have  been  the  production  of 
chance,  or  accident.  If  the  form  and  features 
cannot  be  even  transformed  to  the  painted  can- 
vass, without  the  skill  of  the  cunning  artist ; 
much  less  is  the  living  original  the  production 

3* 


So  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 

of  a  blind  fatuity.  *'  Fearfully  and  wonderfully 
made,"  is  the  high  distinction  enstamped  on  the 
creature  man.  The  eye,  the  ear,  the  tongue, 
the  hand, — nay,  every  organ,  and  muscle,  and 
nerve  of  his  material  frame,  all  indicate  an  in- 
telligent and  designing  Creator.  That  single 
organ,  the  heart,  repeating,  with  such  wondrous 
regularity,  its  lequable  pulsations,  some  sixty 
times  every  minute,  for  three  score  years  and 
ten,  has  not  its  equal  within  the  whole  compass 
of  mechanical  invention  ;  nor  is  it  in  the  power 
of  language  to  express  a  greater  absurdity,  than 
that  it  does  not  indicate  the  hand  and  agency  of 
a  wise  and  almighty  designer.  The  meanest  of 
the  race,  too,  is  invested  with  an  intellectual, 
moral,  and  accountable  nature  ;  the  flame  of  un- 
dying thought  is  lighted  up  within  him,  and 
wondrous  susceptibilities  have  a  dwelling  in  his 
warm  bosom.  The  great  and  Almighty  Parent 
breathed  into  the  cold  clay  the  breath  of  life, 
"  and  man  became  a  living  soul." 

It  has  often  been  questioned,  if  a  speculative 
atheist  ever  existed.  It  is  a  remark  of  Cicero, 
that  "  there  never  was  a  man  who  constantly 
and  absolutely  denied  a  God."  Pure  atheism,  or 
the  absolute  denial  of  an  intelligent  first  cause, 
is  rarely  to  be  met  with ;  but  that  there  have 
been,  and  still  are,  modifications  of  atheism,  may 
hardly  be  denied.    Gross  thoughtlessness;  eager 


GOD  A  FATHER,  59 


inspection  of  the  apparent  inequalities  in  the  di- 
vine government;  extreme  depravity  of  manners; 
the  enormous  absurdity  of  vulgar  superstitions ; 
the  affectation  of  singularity,  and  the  desire  of 
seeming  wiser  than  others;  scepticism  on  other 
moral  subjects ;  and  the  refinements  of  false  sci- 
ence, as  well  as  the  weak  and  inconclusive  argu- 
ments which  have  sometimes  been  employed  to 
prove  the  being  of  a  God ;  have,  there  is  reason 
to  fear,  shaken  the  faith  of  men  in  this  fundamen- 
tal truth  of  all  natural  religion.  But  whatever  the 
forms,  or  the  causes  of  this  radical  error,  it  has  no 
apology  in  the  reason,  or  even  the  prepossessions 
of  the  human  mind.  "  I  had  rather  believe,"  says 
Lord  Bacon,  "  all  the  fables  in  the  Legend,  the 
Talmud,  and  the  Koran,  than  that  this  universal 
frame  is  without  a  mind."  Theybo^  hath  said 
in  his  heart,  there  is  no  God. 

A  strong  and  practical  belief  of  the  Divine 
being  and  presence,  lies  at  the  basis  of  all  true 
devotion.  An  atheist  cannot  pray.  "  He  that 
cometh  to  God,  must  believe  that  he  is,  and  that 
he  is  the  rewarder  of  them  that  diligently  seek 
him."  Men  sometimes  utter  the  words  of 
prayer,  without  seriously  thinking  of  him  to 
whom  they  pray ;  and  though  they  believe  there 
is  a  God,  they  pray  as  if  there  were  none.  They 
do  not  deny,  but  they  disregard  his  being. 
They  are  "  without  God  in  the  world."     "  God 


60  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


is  not  in  all  their  thoughts."  For  all  they  love, 
or  fear,  or  hope  for,  God  might  as  well  not  be. 
Such  prayer  is  "  an  abomination."  Prayer  is 
the  language  of  nature,  because  it  is  the  language 
of  want ;  it  is  the  language  of  a  creature  to  his 
Creator,  of  a  child,  dependent,  helpless,  be- 
nighted, to  his  unearthly  Parent.  The  pagan 
poet,  referred  to  by  Paul,  in  his  appeal  to  the 
philosophers  of  Greece,  made  no  unnatural 
avowal,  when  he  said,  "  For  we  are  also  his 
offspring."  Without  distinction  of  age,  char- 
acter, condition,  or  faith,  the  enlightened  and 
the  ignorant,  Jews,  Mahometans,  Pagans,  and 
Christians,  those  who  dwell  on  the  land  and 
those  who  are  afar  off  upon  the  sea,  may  all 
look  upward,  and  say,  "  Our  Father,  w^ho  art  in 
heaven  !"  There  is  not  one  of  them  that  is  not 
the  object  of  his  paternal  care  and  bounty ; 
whom  he  does  not  instruct  with  a  father's  coun- 
sel, restrain  and  govern  with  a  father's  author- 
ity, and  whom  his  hand  has  not  been  ten 
thousand  times  reached  forth  to  keep  from 
falling  into  destruction.  From  whatever  station 
in  human  life,  or  portion  of  the  world,  or  de- 
graded state  of  human  society ;  from  whatever 
throne,  or  dungeon ;  from  w^hatever  liberty,  or 
whatever  servitude,  any  one  of  the  vast  family 
of  man  may  affectionately  and  dutifully  address 
his  thoughts  to  heaven,  he  shall  find  a  father's 


GOD   A   FATHER,  61 


ear,  and  the  heart  of  a  father.  His  family  is 
large  and  widely  dispersed ;  it  is  composed  of 
millions  upon  million,  scattered  over  every  con- 
tinent and  island,  every  sea  and  shore,  every 
mountain  and  valley,  every  palace  and  every 
log-cabin  ;  nor  is  any  one  of  them  denied  the 
relation  of  children.  They  are  his  property; 
he  made  them  for  himself;  he  owns  and  cares 
for  them. 

One  of  the  obligations  of  piety  is  founded  on 
this  natural  relation  which  men  sustain  to  God 
as  the  parent  source  of  their  being.  There  is 
indeed  a  higher  claim;  but  we  need  look  for 
none  that  is  more  imperative  in  order  to  origi- 
nate our  obligations  to  filial  love  and  obedience. 
"  If  I  be  a  father,"  says  he,  "  where  is  mine 
honor  ?  if  I  be  a  master,  where  is  my  fear  ?" 
What  rights  of  sovereignty  are  comprised  in 
this  single  relation !  The  potter  has  power 
over  the  clay  of  the  same  lump,  to  make  one 
vessel  unto  honor,  and  another  unto  dishonor ; 
yet  the  clay  is  not  the  potter's  creature.  Men 
in  authority  say  to  one,  go,  and  he  goeth,  and 
to  their  servants,  do  this,  and  they  do  it ;  yet 
these  are  but  conventional  claims,  and  have  no 
such  deep  and  immutable  foundation  as  those 
which  result  from  the  relation  of  man  to  his 
Maker.  These  are  bonds  which,  however  vio- 
lated, cannot  be  dissolved,  but  must  remain  in 


62  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


full  force  and  obligation  as  long  as  God  and 
creatures  exist  and  are  what  they  are.  Time 
cannot  alter  them ;  no  condition  of  suffering,  or 
of  joy,  can  alter  them ;  they  remain  unaltered 
to  all  eternity.  Men  will  not  pray,  unless  they 
acknowledge  them  ;  nor  is  it  any  unusual  thing 
for  them  to  "  cast  off  fear  and  restrain  prayer,"  be- 
cause this  very  service  of  prayer  itself  strength- 
ens and  confirms  their  obligations  to  him  in 
W'hom  they  live,  and  move,  and  have  their  be- 
ing. There  is  value  in  this  relation.  Men  feel 
it  in  the  hour  of  danger  and  distress,  even  though 
at  heart  they  know  not  God.  They  look  to 
him  and  are  lightened.  His  tender  mercies  are 
over  all  his  works.  It  is  not  a  matter  of  indif- 
ference to  him  whether  they  live,  or  die.  He 
who  hears  the  young  ravens  when  they  cry,  and 
supplies  the  young  lions  when  they  wander  for 
lack  of  meat,  hears  the  cry  of  distress.  It  is 
not  in  his  heart  of  tenderness  and  love  to  turn 
a  deaf  ear  to  the  sighs  of  human  misery,  come 
they  from  whose  bosom  they  may.  He  who 
commendeth  his  love  toward  us  in  that  w  hen 
we  were  enemies  Christ  died  for  us,  and  who 
when  we  were  dead  in  sin  quickened  us,  with 
all  his  just  hatred  of  their  character,  has  a  heart 
of  pity.  When  agitated  by  fear,  and  depressed 
by  despondency,  from  tiie  ends  of  the  earth 
even  may  such  sinners  cry  unto  him.       There  is 


Wt 


GOD  A  FATHER.  63 


no  promise  in  the  Bible  which  entitles  them  to  a 
hearino^,  while  there  is  the  tenderness  of  the 
Divine  compassion,  that  rebukes  their  despair 
and  urges  them  to  penitence. 

I  have  said  there  are  higher  claims  than  these. 
When  we  adopt  the  language,  "  Our  Father 
who  art  in  heaven,"  we  are  also  reminded  of 
the  still  more  endearing  relation  which  exists  between 
their  Heavenly  Father,  and  those  who  constitute  his 
spiritual  family.  God  has  a  family  of  his  own 
on  the  earth,  a  "peculiar  people,"  in  distinction 
from  the  rest  of  mankind.  To  the  earlier  in- 
vitations to  incorporate  themselves  with  this 
spiritual  family,  men  turned  a  deaf  ear;  they 
made  light  of  them,  and  all  began  to  make  ex- 
cuse. It  is  only  when  they  fall  in  with  these 
gracious  overtures,  that  men  become  the  children 
of  God.  They  are  more  than  creatures  ;  they 
are  affectionate  and  dutiful  children.  They  are 
no  more  strangers  and  foreigners,  but  fellow- 
citizens  with  the  saints,  and  of  the  household 
of  God.  From  the  far  wandering  where  they 
perish  with  hunger,  they  come  home  to  their 
heavenly  Father's  house,  where  there  is  bread 
enough  and  to  spare.  This  is  a  high  and  holy 
relationship.  To  be  God's  creatures  merely, 
does  not  constitute  it.  Birth  in  a  Christian  land 
does  not  constitute  it.  Descent  f)'om  a  pious 
ancestry  does  not  constitute  it.     Holy  baptism 


«^ 


64  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


does  not  constitute  it ;  nor  is  it  constituted  by 
any  mere  outward  forms,  or  professions,  or  ser- 
vices. Many  a  man  sustains  an  outward  and 
visible  relation  to  God's  family,  enjoys  all  the 
immunities  which  such  relation  furnishes,  and 
passes  under  the  external  bond  of  God's  cov- 
enant, to  whom  none  of  these  things  give  a  pass- 
port to  his  kingdom,  and  who  is  in  the  end  an 
outcast. 

The  Scriptures  and  facts  instruct  us  that  every 
son  and  daughter  of  Adam  is  by  nature  alienated 
from  God,  and  a  child  of  wrath.  He  is  destitute 
of  holiness,  unpardoned,  unblessed,  and  has  no 
natural  rights  but  the  just  reward  of  his  iniquity, 
and  the  inheritance  of  the  fallen.  When  w^e 
speak  of  a  child  by  adoption,  we  do  not  mean  a 
child  by  nature.  We  speak  of  adopting  a  stran- 
ger, an  orphan,  an  outcast;  and  this  is  the  adop- 
tion to  which  w^e  refer  when  we  would  indicate 
the  spiritual  family  of  God.  It  is  the  free,  gra- 
cious adoption  of  an  unworthy,  guilty,  and  con- 
demned, but  now  reconciled  and  pardoned  sin- 
ner. "  That  which  is  born  of  the  flesh  is  flesh, 
and  that  which  is  born  of  the  spirit  is  spirit ;" 
there  is  a  first  birth,  and  there  is  a  second,  and 
one  that  is  spiritual  and  from  above.  It  is  this 
new  birth  which  is  the  starting  point  in  the  spir- 
itual career,  and  which  draws  the  dividing  line 
between  those  who  are  aliens  and  those  who  are 


GOD   A   FATHER.  65 


children.  Born  of  earth  only,  they  have  the 
image  of  the  earthly  ;  it  is  not  until  they  are 
"  born,  not  of  blood,  nor  of  the  will  of  the  flesh, 
nor  of  the  will  of  man,  but  of  God,"  that  they  "  bear 
the  image  of  the  heavenly."  It  is  not  more  the 
law  of  nature  that  children  resemble  their  parents, 
than  it  is  the  law  of  grace  that  the  children  of 
God  resemble  their  heavenly  Father.  It  is  by 
no  natural  agencies,  and  no  common  method, 
that  men  thus  become  God's  children.  "  Ye 
are  the  children  of  God,"  saith  the  Apostle,  "  hj 
faith  in  Jesus  Christ.''  He  is  the  honored  One 
in  this  gracious  arrangement.  "  God  sent  forth 
his  Son,  born  of  a  woman,  made  under  the  law, 
to  redeem  them  that  were  under  the  law,  that 
we  might  receive  the  adoption  of  sons."  The 
great  object  of  his  advent  and  sacrifice  was,  "  to 
take  out,"  from  the  mass  of  men,  "  a  people  to 
his  praise ;"  to  separate  from  this  ruined  race  a 
family,  redeemed  by  his  blood,  sanctified  by  his 
Spirit,  and  bearing  the  resemblance  and  name 
of  their  Father  who  is  in  heaven.  He  thus  de- 
scended, that  they  might  ascend.  He  became 
an  obscure  child  of  one  of  the  families  of  earth, 
that  they,  through  him,  and  through  faith  in  his 
name,  might  become  allied  to  the  families  of 
heaven.  Though  the  Son  of  God,  he  became 
the  son  of  man,  that  they,  though  the  sons  of 
men,  might  become  the  children  of  God 


66  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


There  is  a  great  difference  between  the  crea- 
ture of  God,  coniins:  to  God  as  his  Creator,  and 
with  no  other  encouragement  than  the  fliclvering 
hopes  that  are  warranted  by  the  lights  of  reason 
arid  nature,  and  coming  to  God  in  the  new  and 
living  way  opened  up  by  Jesus  Christ.  There 
is  a  great  difference  between  the  sinner  under 
condemnation,  coming  to  the  Judge  of  all,  and 
the  Christian  thus  coming  to  his  heavenly  Pather. 

Even  under  the  old  dispensation,  the  people 
of  God  were  not  denied  the  hopes  and  consola- 
tions of  this  filial  relation.  The  language  of 
Moses  to  the  people  of  Israel  is,  "  Ye  are  the 
children  of  the  Lord  your  God."  "  Doubtless 
thou  art  our  Father'"  is  the  language  of  the 
prophet.  "Though  Abraham  be  ignorant  of 
us,  and  Israel  acknowledge  us  not;  thou  art 
our  Father,  our  Redeemer;  thy  name  is  from 
everlasting."'  In  the  same  strain  of  pensive  con- 
fidence, he  goes  on  to  say,  "  But  now^,  O  Lord, 
thou  art  our  Father;  behold,  see  we  beseech  thee, 
we  are  all  thy  people  !"  And  again,  in  the 
words  of  another  prophet  it  is  w^itten^  "  Wilt 
thou  not  from  this  time  cry  unto  me,  My  Father, 
thou  art  the  guide  of  my  youth  ?"  But  this  is 
not  the  ordinary  language  of  that  less  illumined 
age.  Under  the  old  dispensation,  the  Holy 
Spirit  in  believers  w^as,  to  no  small  extent,  the 
spirit  of  bondage  ;  under  the  new,  it  is  that  of 


GOD   A   FATHER.  67 


adoption.  The  privilege  of  calling  God  tlieir 
Father  was  not  so  fully  known ;  because  "  the 
new  and  living  way  into  the  holiest  of  all  was 
not  yet  made  manifest."  Those  ancient  saints 
had  beheld  fearful  exhibitions  of  the  Deity ;  to 
them  he  was  "  fearful"  even  "  in  his  praises ;" 
he  had  "  said  that  he  would  dwell  in  the  thick 
darkness/'  The  Christian's  view,  in  approach- 
ing the  throne  of  grace,  is,  that  God  is  his  Fa- 
ther. Abba,  Father,  is  his  cry.  However  great 
his  unworthiness  and  ill-desert,  it  is  his  privilege 
to  come  as  a  child,  an  heir  of  God,  a  fellow-heir 
with  Christ  his  Son.  The  truth  cannot  be  too 
frequently  inculcated,  that  there  is  but  one  way 
of  access  unto  God  in  any  of  his  institutions. 
Every  other  way  is  but  some  modification  of 
Deism.  The  punishment  of  sin  is  necessary  be- 
cause of  sin.  When  a  sin7ier  approaches  God 
with  the  confidence  of  a  child,  he  honors  the 
great  propitiation  made  by  his  coequal  Son. 
The  eternal  Father  is  well  pleased  to  have  this 
effective  mediation  thus  put  to  the  test  by  all 
who  call  upon  him.  He  would  have  us  address 
him  by  this  new  name,  "  Our  Father" — a  name 
so  entwined  with  the  dearest  associations  of  the 
human  heart.  And  it  is  in  delightful  keeping 
with  his  nature,  "  who  breaks  not  the  bruised 
reed,  and  quenches  not  the  smoking  flax,"  to 
teach  his  disciples  thus  to  pray.     Never  was 


68  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


sight  more  interesting  and  lovely  on  earth  than 
this ;  and  many  a  miniature  of  it,  though  faint 
indeed,  I  doubt  not  is  engraven  on  the  memory 
of  millions.  Who  first  taught  us  to  pray,  as 
Christ  taught  his  disciples  ?  Who  can  forget 
the  time,  or  the  place,  when  he  buried  his  face 
in  his  mother's  bosom,  or  knelt  at  her  feet,  and 
repeated  the  words  from  her  lips,  "  Our  Father 
who  art  in  heaven  !" 

The  eccentric,  but  remarkable  man,  John  Ran- 
dolph, once  was  heard  to  say,  that  he  should 
probably  have  been  an  atheist,  but  for  his  tender 
remembrance  of  the  scene  where  a  devout 
mother  bade  him  kneel  by  her  side,  and  taking 
his  little  hands  in  hers,  taught  him  to  say,  "  Our 
Father,  who  art  in  heaven."  And  would  not 
many  of  us  have  been  atheists,  had  we  not,  in 
the  gracious  providence  of  God,  thus  been 
taught  to  pray  ?  Our  Father — blessed  relation  ! 
Thrice  blessed  Saviour,  thus  to  instruct  the 
guilty  children  of  men  !  That  he  should  ap- 
propriate such  language  as  this,  is  not  strange ; 
but  that  he  should  instruct  us  to  appropriate  it, 
may  well  lead  us  to  exclaim,  "  Behold,  what 
manner  of  love  is  this,  that  we  should  be  called 
the  sons  of  God  !" 

The  beautiful  language  of  his  prayer  is,  "  Our 
Father."  There  are  two  thoughts  of  interest 
in  this  emphatic  phraseology.     "  Thou  art  my 


*-^ 


GOD   A   FATHER.  69 


God,"  says  the  Psalmist,  "  and  I  will  exalt 
thee."  Elsewhere  he  says,  "  God,  our  own  God, 
shall  bless  us."  There  are  the  actings  of  an  ap- 
propriating faith  in  words  like  these.  When  the 
Saviour  showed  Thomas  his  wounded  hands  and 
feet,  he  exclaimed,  "  My  Lord  and  mij  God !" 
Faith  is  an  humble  grace,  a  self-renouncing 
grace  ;  but  it  is  a  trusting  confidence.  God  is 
in  Christ,  reconciling  the  world  to  himself; 
when  the  believer  receives  him,  he  receives  him 
for  his  own  soul.  He  is  his  own  God.  It  is  a 
privilege  to  call  him  Father,  but  a  greater  priv- 
ilege to  be  enabled  by  his  Spirit  to  say,  in  the 
language  of  this  prayer,  Our  Father. 

"  We  would  no  longer  lie 

Like  slaves  beneath  the  throne  ; 
Our  faith  shall  Abba,  Father,  cry, 
And  thou  the  kindred  own." 

Whatever  is  expressed  by  that  comprehensive 
word,  the  faith  of  the  suppliant  receives  as  his 
own,  and  for  his  own  benefit.  God's  fatherly 
love  is  his;  his,  his  power  and  faithfulness;  his, 
all  the  perfections  of  the  Godhead,  pledged  for 
his  security  and  ultimate  salvation.  Such  is  the 
privilege  of  faith,  and  of  all  the  children  of 
God.  No  unbeliever  can  thus  use  the  words  of 
this  prayer.  Every  such  man  is  a  stranger  to 
this  filial  relation,  because  there  is  not  a  trace 


70  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


of  filial  afFection  toward  God  within  his  cold, 
suspicious,  and  hostile  bosom.  He  has  not  the 
adoption  of  sons;  and  they  are  sons  only  who 
can  thus  say,  Our  Father! 

But  this  is  not  all  which  these  cheering  words 
express.  The  social  character  of  this  prayer  may 
not  be  passed  over  in  silence.  It  is  "  Our 
Father."  The  social  character  of  religion  is  too 
little  known  by  the  men  of  the  world,  and  ap- 
preciated too  little  by  Christians.  It  is  an  egre- 
gious error,  into  which  many  have  fallen  who 
know  nothing  of  Christianity  but  its  name,  that 
it  is  a  morose  and  cheerless  thing;  that  it  is 
made  up  of  useless  sacrifices,  and  joyless  self- 
denial  ;  and  that,  instead  of  being  welcomed  to 
the  very  bosom  of  human  society,  its  proper 
place  is  the  solitary  mountain,  the  lonely  cham- 
ber, the  sequestered  grove,  or  the  cold  monas- 
tery. True  piety  has  indeed  much  to  do  with 
individual  character  and  obligations.  It  cannot 
exist  without  secret  meditation,  and  solitary 
communion  with  God.  It  becomes  rank  and 
poisonous,  without  the  retirement  of  self-inspec- 
tion and  secret  prayer.  It  withers  and  dies, 
without  those  hallowed  feelings  and  affections 
that  are  unseen  by  mortal  eye,  and  those  unut- 
tered  breathings  of  the  soul  that  are  unheard  by 
mortal  ears.     Yet  is  it  designed  to  call  into  ex- 


GOD   A   FATHER. 


71 


ercise  and  consecrate  all  the  social  principles  of 
our  nature. 

There  are  common  interests,  and  there 
are  individual  interests,  to  be  prosecuted  in 
joint  supplication.  God  is  not  only  the  hearer 
of  prayer,  but  the  hearer  of  social  prayer.  There 
can  be  no  family  wisely  constituted  that  is  with- 
out it.  Wherever  God  records  his  name,  there 
will  he  meet  his  people,  and  bless  them  socially. 
No  two  individuals  can  be  connected  together, 
who  have  not  some  common  interest  as  the 
ground  of  joint  supplication.  The  same  may  be 
said  of  larger  bodies  of  men.  Every  Legislature 
that  is  convened  for  the  enacting  of  laws  and  the 
purposes  of  government,  should  unitedly  and 
daily  seek  the  guidance  and  blessing  of  Heaven. 
Every  ship  that  floats  on  the  ocean,  should  be 
vocal  with  prayer.  But  especially  is  this  the 
social  privilege  of  the  church  of  God.  All  her 
prayers  are  founded  on  the  principle,  that  as  an 
associated  community,  she  is  composed  of  God's 
children,  and  approaches  his  throne  as  accept- 
ed in  the  Beloved.  Those  who  oppose  social 
prayer,  do  not  love  prayer  at  all.  Social  prayers, 
for  things  that  belong  to  the  social  relations,  are 
heard  and  answered.  It  is  as  much  the  constitu- 
tion of  God's  moral  government,  that  bodies  of 
men,  who  have  a  common  interest,  offer  prayers 
for  common  wants,  as  it  is  the  constitution  of  his 


72  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


providence  that  individuals  offer  them  for  indi- 
vidual wants.  The  author  of  this  prayer  was 
divine,  yet  a  man  like  ourselves ;  and  because 
he  was  no  stranger  to  our  sympathies,  he  has  left 
the  reviving  promise,  "  Where  two  or  three  are 
met  together  in  my  name,  there  am  I  in  the 
midst  of  them."  The  primitive  Christians  were 
eminently  spiritual,  but  their  religion  was 
strongly  marked  by  its  social  character.  It  con- 
sisted in  their  "  walking  together  in  all  the  com- 
mandments and  ordinances  of  the  Lord  blameless- 
ly," in  refreshing  one  another  in  their  languor 
and  fatigue— cheering  one  another  in  their  de- 
pression— inspiriting  one  another  in  their  thorny 
and  often  sanguinary  way. 

Why  should  it  not  always  be  thus  ?  Is  it  that 
there  are  any  necessary  elements  of  dissension 
in.  the  society  of  Christians,  or  that  those  who 
love  God,  and  whom  God  loves,  have  not  the 
strongest  inducements  to  love  one  another  ?  Men 
who  have  accepted  the  offers  of  the  divine  mer- 
cy, as  sinners ;  who  have  been  renewed  by  the 
divine  Spirit,  and  reconciled  to  God  by  faith  in 
his  Son  ;  who  are  the  purchase  of  his  blood,  the 
subjects  of  his  kingdom,  the  children  of  his 
family,  the  heirs  of  his  glory — strangely  forget 
the  bond  that  constitutes  them  one  society, 
when  they  do  not  "  love  as  brethren."  That 
sublime    address,    "  Our    Father,   who    art    in 


GOD   A   FATHER,  73 


heaven,"  is  an  everlasting  rebuke  to  all  such 
Christians.  Numbers  unite  in  this  act  of  worship. 
All  have  virtually  united  in  it  for  eighteen  cen- 
turies; and  all  will  unite  in  it  to  the  end  of 
time.  ''  Our  Father"  binds  all  Christians  in  one. 
It  leaps  every  external  barrier;  surmounts  the 
obstacles  of  birth  and  station,  wealth  and 
talent ;  disregards  the  shades  and  colors  of  de- 
nomination and  difference ;  nay,  it  overlooks  in- 
firmities and  faults;  and  asks  only,  before  it 
gives  the  right  hand  of  fellowship  to  the  "par- 
taker of  its  own  apostacy  and  hopes,"  Is  he  a 
Christian  1  does  he  love  Jesus  Christ  ?  does  he 
believe  in  the  Son  of  God  1  does  he  do  the  will 
of  his  Father  who  is  in  heaven  ? 

The  social  relations  flourish  only  under  the 
genial  influence  of  Christianity.  They  have 
never  been  known  in  their  purity  in  Pagan 
lands,  however  elevated  by  science,  and  refined 
by  the  courtesies  of  life.  Those  sentiments  of 
predilection,  those  principles  of  elective  aflfinity, 
and  those  laws  of  association  which  govern 
men  and  bodies  of  men,  who  are  themselves 
ungoverned  by  the  gospel,  are  for  the  most  part 
false  and  treacherous,  impure  in  their  origin, 
sinful  in  their  nature  and  designs,  and  melan- 
choly in  their  consequences.  The  gospel  alone 
purifies  and  elevates  them,  and  gives  them  prin- 
ciple.    "  Our  Father,  who  art  in  heaven" — how 

4 


74  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


strong  the  bond  !  Here  the  worst  affections  are 
subdued,  and  the  best  called  into  exercise. 
Here  every  principle  of  truth  and  goodness  is 
confirmed,  every  devotional  feeling  strength- 
ened, and  piety  becomes  invested  with  new 
attractions.  The  powers  of  earth  and  sin  are 
here  subdued,  suspicion  and  jealousy,  envy  and 
hatred.  Here  the  motives  to  mutual  forbear- 
ance and  confidence  acquire  increased  force ; 
and  common  hopes,  hopes  full  of  immortality, 
become  the  foretaste  and  earnest  of  holier  and 
happier  associations  in  a  more  holy  and  happy 
world. 

Nor  may  the  thought  be  lost  sight  of,  that 
union  is  the  soul  and  strength  of  prayer.  If 
"  united  action  is  powerful  action,"  so  is  united 
prayer  powerful  prayer.  That  one  word,  Our 
Father,  is  a  voice  from  heaven  calling  upon  all 
the  children  of  God  to  cultivate  more  assiduously 
the  spirit,  and  practise  more  faithfully  the  duty 
o{ united  prayer.  ''If  two  of  you  shall  agree  on 
earth  as  touching  anything  they  shall  ask,  it 
shall  be  done  for  them  of  my  Father  who  is  in 
heaven."  Why  should  the  social  principle  be 
pressed  into  every  other  service,  save  the  ser- 
vice of  God;  and  why,  while  men  associate  for 
the  purposes  of  business,  pleasure,  literature,  ac- 
complishments, science,  and  the  arts,  are  there 
so  few  associations  for  prayer  ?   Shall  every  other 


GOD   A   FATHER.  75 


society  be  sought,  rather  than  the  society  of 
God's  children  ?  Shall  men  be  ambitious  of 
fellowship  with  those  who  occupy  a  large  place 
in  this  world's  consideration,  and  shall  they  be 
ashamed  of  those,  who  have  no  higher  honors 
than  that  they  am  the  disciples  of  Jesus  ?  There 
is  something  unutterably  delightful,  sweetly 
subduing,  universally  humanizing,  in  the  bond 
which  thus  has  its  origin  far  above  this  low 
earth,  which  survives  the  changes  of  this  world, 
which  receives  solidity  from  its  afflictions  and 
sufferings,  becomes  the  stronger  from  all  that 
threatens  it,  is  indissoluble  to  the  ravages  of 
death,  and  grows  purer  and  brighter  forever  ! 

There  is  also  in  this  brief  address,  a  sublime 
asc7'iptioti.  Our  Father  who  art  in  heaven!  The 
Divine  Being  is  not  confined  either  to  the  heav- 
ens or  the  earth.  He  "  filleth  all  in  all."  There 
is  no  height  so  lofty,  and  no  depth  so  unfathom- 
able; no  place  so  unoccupied,  and  no  void  so 
empty  and  extensive,  that  he  does  not  occupy 
it.  "  Am  I  a  God  at  hand,  and  not  a  God  afar 
off,  saith  the  Lord  ?  Do  I  not  fill  heaven  and 
earth,  saith  the  Lord?"  Neither  land,  nor  sea, 
nor  heaven,  nor  hell,  nor  light,  nor  darkness, 
contains  the  place  where  He  does  not  dwell. 

But  though  this  great  and  universal  Parent 
is  everywhere,  there  is  strong  propriety  in  fixing 
our  thoughts  upon  him  in  prayer,  as  a    being 


•O  .  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 

every  way  exalted,  and  far  above  all  creatures. 
We  may  not  think  of  our  Father  who  is  in 
heaven,  as  we  think  of  any  other  being  in  the 
universe,  nor  address  him  as  we  address  another. 
He  is  in  heaven ;  highly  exalted  as  God  over  all; 
reigning  there  in  invisible  majesty,  and  dwell- 
ing in  light  that  is  inaccessible  and  full  of  glory. 
He  is  venerable  for  his  greatness.  He  decks 
himself  with  light  as  with  a  garment,  and  is 
arrayed  in  majesty  and  excellency.  He  stretch- 
eth  out  the  heavens  as  a  pavilion ;  he  layeth  the 
beams  of  his  chambers  in  the  waters ;  he  maketh 
the  clouds  his  chariot,  and  walketh  upon  the 
wings  of  the  wind.  The  alternations  of  day 
and  night,  cold  and  heat,  and  all  the  varieties 
of  the  seasons,  are  determined  by  him.  He 
commandeth  the  sun  and  it  riseth  not,  and 
he  sealeth  up  the  stars.  He  maketh  Arcturus, 
Orion,  Pleiades,  and  the  chambers  of  the  south. 
He  doeth  great  things,  past  finding  out,  yea,  and 
wonders  without  number.  He  maketh  his  an- 
gels spirits,  his  ministers  a  flaming  fire.  Clouds 
and  darkness  are  round  about  him,  justice  and 
judgment  are  the  habitation  of  his  throne.  A 
fire  goeth  before  him,  and  burneth  up  his  ene- 
mies round  about.  His  lightnings  enlighten  the 
w^orld  ;  the  earth  sees  and  trembles.  The  hills 
melt  like  wax  at  the  presence  of  the  Lord,  at 
the  presence  of  the   Lord  of  the  whole  earth. 


GOD  A   FATHER.  77 


The  heavens  declare  his  righteousness,  and  all 
the  people  see  his  glory.  We  call  him  our 
Father,  while  angels  bow  before  him,  and  be- 
fore the  splendor  of  his  glory  cover  their  faces 
with  their  wings.  With  what  sacred  emotions 
ought  such  a  being  to  be  approached  !  and  how 
wondrous  the  condescension  that  he  should 
point  us  to  his  mercy  seat,  and  say,  There  will 
I  meet  thee,  and  there  will  I  commune  with 
thee  !  O  let  us  lift  up  our  hands  with  our  heart 
to  God  who  dwelleth  in  the  heavens!  Be  not 
rash  with  thy  mouth,  and  let  not  thine  heart  be 
hasty  to  utter  anything  before  God ;  no  thought- 
lessness, no  impertinence,  no  irreverent  famili- 
arity may  be  indulged  with  the  great  God. 
The  nearer  the  soul  approaches  to  him,  the 
more  profound  the  reverence.  There  is  rever- 
ence in  the  more  familiar  and  confiding  exer- 
cises and  expressions  of  filial  love.  We  rever- 
ence earthly  parents ;  but  he  is  our  Father  who 
is  in  heaven.  Heaven  is  the  place  he  has 
chosen  for  the  seat  of  his  glory ;  where  the 
splendor  of  his  divinity  shines;  whence  he  is- 
sues forth  the  decrees  of  his  providence  ;  and 
where  he  proclaims  himself,  and  the  myriads 
that  stand  in  his  presence  proclaim  him,  the 
King  eternal,  immortal,  and  invisible. 

Thouglits  like  these  are  searching  thoughts.   A 
child  may  deceive  an  earthly  parent,  but  "  God 


78  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


cannot  be  deceived,  and  he  will  not  be  mocked." 
"  All  things  are  open  and  naked  to  the  eye  of 
him  with  whom  we  have  to  do."  Lost,  indeed, 
w^ere  that  child  to  all  virtuous  and  honorable  feel- 
ing, who,  amid  scenes  of  folly  and  wickedness, 
would  not  shrink  from  the  inspection  of  a  father's 
eye.  We  have  a  Father,  whose  inspection  of  our 
every  thought  is  minute  and  constant;  who  asks 
no  informer  to  acquaint  him  with  our  wicked- 
ness, no  testimony  to  confound  us  before  him, 
and  clothe  us  with  shame,  if  we  come  to  his 
throne  with  disingenuousness  and  insincerity. 

But  they  are  also  comforting  thoughts.  There 
is  great  imperfection  in  earthly  parents  com- 
pared with  God.  Earthly  parents  know  not 
how  to  adapt  their  bounty  at  all  times  to  the 
wants  of  their  children.  They  give  when  they 
ought  not  to  give,  and  withhold  when  they 
ought  not  to  withhold.  There  is  no  such  de- 
fect, and  no  such  mistake  with  God.  Earthly 
parents,  when  they  would  fain  give  to  their  chil- 
dren, are  not  able.  The  poor  cannot  give  of 
their  penury ;  and  where  competence,  and 
wealth  even,  fall  to  the  lot  of  parents,  there  are 
wants  which  no  opulence  can  supply.  But 
nothing  restricts  God's  power  to  give  :  giving 
does  not  impoverish,  withholding  does  not  en- 
rich him.  The  love  of  earthly  parents  is  strong ; 
it  survives  separation,  annihilates  distance,  for- 


GOD   A   FATHER.  79 


gives  disobedience,  rebellion,  and  neglect.  It 
does  not  perish  even  with  the  infamy  of  its  ob- 
jects, nor  will  it  yield  its  claims  to  the  stern  and 
inevitable  demands  of  the  grave.  It  ou^^lives 
life ;  feeds  on  recollected  joys  and  hopes,  and 
lavishes  on  the  marble  and  on  the  turf  that 
tenderness  of  which  the  dead  are  unconscious. 
It  is  self-sacrificing  and  uncomplaining,  coveting 
even  weariness,  and  watcliings,  and  pain  for 
those  it  loves.  But  it  is  not  indestructible. 
Other  objects  sometimes  supersede  its  claims. 
Coldness  has  extinguished  it ;  desertion  and 
neglect  have  quenched  its  glowing  embers  ;  it 
has  often  yielded  to  prejudice,  and  perished  un- 
der the  power  of  lust  and  superstition,  "  Can  a 
w^oman  forget  her  sucking  child  ?  Yea,  they 
may  forget,"  says  our  Father  who  is  in  heaven, 
"  yet  will  I  not  forget  thee  !"  "  Whom  he 
loves,  he  loves  to  the  end."  Heaven  and  earth 
shall  pass  away,  but  this  faithful  word  of  love 
and  mercy  shall  never  pass  away.  Earthly 
parents  die;  they  dwell  in  "houses  of  clay; 
their  foundation  is  in  the  dust,  and  they  are 
crushed  before  the  moth."  The  brow  that 
bears  the  marks  of  care  and  toil,  becomes  pale 
and  cold;  the  hands  that  minister  to  the  wants 
of  those  who  are  most  beloved,  must  be  para- 
lyzed in  the  grave  ;  the  tongue  of  wisdom  must 
be  silent  in  that  narrow  hovise  where  there  is 


80  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


"  no  work,  nor  wisdom,  nor  device ;"  and  the 
heart  that  beats  for  us,  must  soon  beat  its  last 
throb,  and  sleep  beneath  the  clods  of  the 
valley. 

Not  so  with  our  Father  who  is  in  heaven. 
Around  the  grave  of  the  fondest  earthly  parent, 
the  children  of  God  may  exclaim,  "  The  Lord 
liveth,  and  blessed  be  my  Rock,  and  let  the  God 
of  my  salvation  be  exalted."  Time  passes,  but 
shortens  not  his  duration.  Years  roll  away  upon 
years,  while  he  still  lives  in  the  bloom  of  his 
eternity.  The  expressions  of  parental  love  can- 
not follow  those  on  whom  they  are  lavished  to 
the  grave,  and  protect  them  from  corruption  and 
the  worm ;  nor  go  with  them  up  to  the  bar  of 
judgment,  and  shield  them  from  the  sentence  of 
a  violated  law.  It  is  a  corruptible  inheritance 
only  which  they  can  leave  to  their  children,  to 
be  divided  among  them  for  a  brief  period,  in  this 
transitory  world.  Their  Father,  who  is  in  hea- 
ven, distributes  to  his  children  honors  that  are 
unwasting — an  inheritance  which  is  incorrupti- 
ble, undefiled,  and  that  fadetli  not  away,  a  build- 
ing of  God,  an  house  not  made  with  hands, 
eternal  in  the  heavens.  In  their  Father's  house 
are  many  mansions.  Their  home  is  above  the 
clouds.  God  himself  is  the  heritage  of  his 
people — their  heaven,  and  their  exceeding  great 
reward. 


GOD   A   FATHER.  81 


And  they  are  also  grateful  thoughts.  It  has 
been  objected  to  the  Lord's  Prayer,  that  it  con- 
tains no  ascription  of  thanksgiving.  But  is  there 
no  feeling  of  tender  love — of  grateful,  subduing 
remembrance,  when  from  the  heart  we  say, 
"  Our  Father,  who  art  in  heaven  ?"  Is  there  no 
recognition  of  inexhaustible  bounty,  boundless 
beneficence,  rivers  of  love,  oceans  of  mercy,  a 
generosity  so  disinterested  and  noble,  and  a  ten- 
derness so  touching,  that  it  were  impossible  to 
give  utterance  to  our  deep  sense  of  them  in  any 
language  half  so  compendiously  and  forcibly  as 
in  these  few  words  ?  This  great  and  good 
Being,  this  King  eternal,  immortal,  invisible, 
writes  his  name,  "  Our  Father  ;"  gives  us  access 
to  Him  as  his  children  !  The  condescension  is 
his ;  the  privilege,  ours.  What  have  we  to  be 
thankful  for,  compared  with  this?  What  has  all 
this  world  to  offer,  compared  with  the  privilege 
of  calling  God  our  Father  ? 

Let  the  spirit  of  this  first  sentence  in  the 
Lord's  Prayer  counsel  us  to  cherish  more  befit- 
ting impressions  of  the  God  we  worship.  He  is 
no  unbending  tyrant,  no  hard  master;  but  the 
best  and  kindest  of  fathers.  Vengeance  is  not 
the  attribute  he  delights  in;  he  delighteth  in 
mercy.  Oh,  how  little  do  they  know  of  God, 
who  clothe  him  only  with  terrors,  and  refuse  to 

hope  in  his  mercy  !     He  is  terrible  only  to  incor- 

4* 


82  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


rigible  wickedness ;  to  the  penitent,  gentle  and 
mild,  as  a  nurse  toward  lier  children.  Away  with 
this  jealousy  and  suspicion,  this  distrust,  fear,  and 
aversion,  when  contemplating  the  character  of 
your  Father  which  is  in  heaven.  There  is  no 
sternness  and  repulsiveness  in  that  Holy  One, 
who  teaches  his  children  to  call  him  Father.  It 
is  not  with  the  frown  of  wrath  upon  his  brow, 
nor  with  menaced  damnation  on  his  lips,  nor 
with  the  thunderbolt  of  vengeance  in  his  hand, 
that  he  invites  sinners  to  his  throne.  There  are 
other  discoveries  of  the  divine  nature  than 
these.  There  is  the  heart  of  love  ;  there  is  the 
infinitude  of  love,  "  not  willing  that  any  should 
perish,  but  that  all  should  come  to  repentance." 
There  is  not  one  among  all  those  to  whom  his 
Gospel  is  known,  who  has  not  the  warrant  to 
accept  these  great  provisions  of  their  heavenly 
Father's  love.  Those  who  are  afar  off,  may  draw 
nigh  ;  those  who  are  aliens  and  enemies,  may 
become  children,  and  be  adopted  into  his  divine 
family.  "  Behold,"  saith  he,  "  I  stand  at  the 
door,  and  knock ;  if  any  man  hear  my  voice,  and 
open  the  door,  I  will  come  in  and  sup  with  him, 
and  he  with  me."  Though  unworthy  of  the 
privilege,  though  we  cannot  acquire  it  by  any 
works  of  righteousness,  though  the  gold  ofOphir 
cannot  purchase  it,  it  is  a  privilege  that  he  gives, 
gives  as  an  affectionate  father  gives  to  his  son, 


GOD   A   FATHER.  83 


as  a  wealthy,  bountiful  prince  adopts  some  poor 
orphan,  and  makes  lym  the  inheritor  of  his 
crown. 

Come,  then,  ye  who  are  young  !  no  longer  de- 
spise the  bounty  and  grace  of  your  Father  who 
is  in  heaven.  Come  and  enter  into  his  family, 
whose  faithful  love  will  guard  you  from  the  sias 
that  embitter,  and  the  woes  that  await  all  who 
are  strangers  to  the  living  God.  Now,  while 
conscience  is  yet  tender,  and  memory  and  heart 
are  open  to  impressions  that  will  leave  their 
trace  upon  many  a  passing  year;  now,  "  while 
the  evil  days  come  not,"  remember  your  Crea- 
tor in  the  days  of  your  youth.  He  utters  no 
stronger  and  no  more  affectionate  claim,  than 
when  he  says,  "  My  son,  give  me  thy  heart." 
He  would  have  those  wayward  and  wandering 
thoughts,  those  dissipated,  and  vain,  and  idola- 
trous affections  weaned  from  others,  and  con- 
centrated on  himself.  Child  of  promise  and 
of  hope,  of  solicitude  and  prayer !  thought- 
less and  gay,  and  never  more  in  need  of  a  fa- 
ther's care,  "  wilt  thou  not,  from  this  time,  say 
unto  him,  My  Father !  thou  art  the  guide  of  my 
youth  ?" 

Ye,  too,  who  are  absorbed  in  earth,  infatu- 
ated by  its  pleasures,  burdened  with  its  busi- 
ness, or  grasping  after  its  wealth  and  honors ! 
come  ye,  and  seek  the  repose,  and  set  your  af- 


84  THE  MERCY   SEAT, 


fections  on  the  inheritance  which  earth  has  not, 
and  which  pertains  only  to  the  family  of  God. 
"  Wherefore  spend  ye  your  money  for  that 
which  is  not  bread,  and  your  labor  for  that 
which  satisfieth  not  ?"  Powerless  as  this  world 
is  to  make  you  happy,  it  is  mighty  to  destroy. 
Why,  pilgrims  and  strangers  on  the  earth,  give 
ye  to  that  w^orld,  the  fashion  of  which  passeth 
away,  the  affections  which  are  due  only  to  Him 
who  liveth  forever  and  ever !  "  Wherefore 
come  ye  out  from  among  them,  and  be  ye  sepa- 
rate, saith  the  Lord,  and  touch  not  the  unclean 
thing ;  and  I  will  receive  you,  and  will  be  a  Fa- 
ther unto  you,  and  ye  shall  be  my  sons  and 
daughters,  saith  the  Lord  Almighty." 

Ye  children  of  sorrow  !  to  you  the  voice  of 
mercy  declares  that  the  man  is  never  comfort- 
less who  has  God  for  his  Father.  Trials  are  no 
longer  trials,  when  the  burden  is  cast  on  the 
bosom  of  his  paternal  love.  Sorrow  loses  its 
name,  when  his  own  soft  hand  wipes  away  the 
tear.  Consolation  in  the  woes  of  earth  is  not  in 
forgetfulness,  nor  in  gaiety,  nor  in  braving  the 
ills  which  it  is  impossible  to  avoid.  Miserable 
comforters  are  they  all ! 

Ye  whose  earthly  parents  have  descended  to 
the  tomb,  and  left  you  to  prove  the  chilling  neg- 
ligence and  selfishness  of  this  cold  world,  how 
unutterably  precious  for  ycm  to  learn  the  lesson, 


■f^ 


GOD   A   FATHER.  85 


"  When  my  father  and  mother  forsake  me,  then 
the  Lord  will  take  me  up  !"  Let  not  your  heart 
"be  troubled.  He  will  not  leave  you  orphans. 
Think  not  that  your  last  hope  lies  buried  among 
the  dead.  Weep  not  in  such  bitter  anguish  at 
that  grave.  Say  not,  "O  that  I  were  resting 
with  thee,  beneath  that  tranquil  clod!"  Your 
Father  who  is  in  heaven  shall  never  die.  "  He 
hath  said,  I  will  never  leave  thee,  nor  forsake 
thee !" 

Ye,  too,  who  are  disappointed  and  mortified 
in  the  world  ;  who  are  sick  of  men  because  they 
have  so  often  deceived  you,  come,  make  the 
eternal  God  your  refuge.  Ye  whose  hopes  have 
leaned  on  earth,  only  to  learn  that  in  one  sad 
hour  the  bright  vision  may  vanish,  come  and 
lean  on  an  arm  that  is  never  weary,  and  partake 
of  bounty  that  is  never  exhausted.  Ye,  too,  who 
may  peradventure  complain  of  earthly  parents, 
come  ye  and  make  the  God  of  heaven  your  Fa- 
ther. There  is  One  of  whose  care  and  tender- 
ness you  shall  never  complain  ;  of  whose  libe- 
rality you  shall  indulge  no  suspicion ;  and  who, 
while  all  the  objects  of  love  and  expectation 
here  below  prove  broken  cisterns  that  hold  no 
water,  himself  remains  the  fountain  of  living 
waters. 

And  ye  who  have  no  God !  O  return  ye  to 
the  God  from  whom  ye  have  revolted,  the  heav- 


■^fi 


86  THE   MERCY  SEAT. 


enly  Parent  you  have  so  ungratefully  forsaken, 
and  who  by  so  many  and  such  various  means, 
would  fain  induce  you,  prodigal  as  you  may  be, 
to  look  toward  your  Father's  house.  What  a 
void — what  a  chasm  in  that  bosom  that  has  no 
God — no  Father !  How  true  to  nature  is  such  a 
prayer !  how  dear  to  nature  are  the  precious 
truths  it  reveals !  Return,  poor  exile,  to  thy 
forsaken  Father.  Come,  thou  wanderer,  thou 
long-lost  spirit,  come  back  at  thy  Father's  bid- 
ding. Here  is  his  letter  missive  to  thee,  in- 
viting thee  to  come.  Here  is  his  name  and 
seal.  Are  they  not  your  Father's  ?  In  the  secret 
of  thy  closet,  then,  return  to  him.  In  the  si- 
lence of  thy  heart,  return  to  him.  In  mourning 
and  penitence,  in  confidence  in  his  Son,  in  peace 
and  joy,  come  back  to  him.  And  then,  when 
you  die  to  sin  and  earth,  you  will  live  unto  God 
and  heaven  ;  you  will  go  to  your  Father's  house, 
and  where  he  is,  there  shall  you  be  also. 


CHAPTER   IV. 


THE  NAME   OF  GOD   HALLOWED. 


This  formula  of  prayer  bears  the  same  rela- 
tion to  the  subject  matter  of  prayer,  as  the  ten 
precepts  of  the  Decalogue  do  to  the  whole  sub- 
ject of  obedience.  As  the  latter,  under  some 
one  or  other  of  its  precepts,  comprehends  what- 
ever is  man's  duty  in  any  situation,  so  the  for- 
mer, under  some  one  or  other  of  its  petitions, 
contains  every  request  that  a  man  need  offer  to 
the  throne  of  grace.  "  Halioived  be  thy  name,'"  is 
the  first  of  these  comprehensive  petitions. 

The  order  in  which  the  desires  of  a  devout 
mind  are  here  directed  to  be  expressed,  cor- 
responds with  the  object  of  the  Deity  in  crea- 
tion, providence,  and  redemption.  There  is  no 
truth  more  clearly  revealed,  or  more  consonant 
to  reason,  than  ^hat  God  should  have  the  glory. 
Wherever  we  look  around  his  works,  they  are 
marked  with  excellence ;  not  with  the   excel- 


88  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


lence  of  the  creature,  but  of  the  Creator,  who 
is  '•  God  over  all,  blessed  for  evermore."  When 
you  compare  all  created  excellence  with  his,  it 
is  as  nothing.  It  is  great  to  us,  but  we  are 
small.  Put  all  the  excellence  and  all  the  en- 
joyment which  appear  in  the  manifestations  of 
his  goodness  in  the  balance  with  himself,  and 
they  are  as  the  dust  of  the  balance.  That 
which  is  finite  can  bear  no  assignable  propor- 
tion to  that  which  is  infinite.  So  that  whether 
we  stand  on  the  basis  of  Scripture,  or  sober 
reason,  no  end  should  be  so  steadily  pursued  as 
the  glory  of  God. 

Such  would  be  the  religion  of  nature,  had  not 
man  fiillen  by  his  iniquity.  Such  is  the  relig- 
ion of  the  Bible,  and  of  man  fallen,  man  re- 
deemed, man  glorified.  There  is  but  one  ob- 
ject that  is  enthroned  in  the  heart  of  piety,  and 
that  is  the  infinitely  blessed  and  adorable  God. 
Everything  else  occupies  a  place  second  and 
subordinate  to  his  honor  and  glory.  The  first 
promptings  of  prayer,  therefore,  are  uttered  in 
the  language  of  reverential  piety  toward  God. 
Above  ourselves,  above  all  creatures,  above  all 
that  is  in  earth,  or  in  heaven,  we  approach  his 
throne  to  express  our  supreme  regard  for  him. 
And  how  do  we  express  that  regard.  "  Hal- 
lowed be  thy  name,''''  is  the  first  desire  of  a  believ- 
er's heart.     Let  us  analyze  this  great  request. 


THE  NAME  OF   GOD   HALLOWED.  89 


"  Name"  is  that  which  distinguishes  a  partic- 
ular object,  or  person,  from  all  others.  This  is 
universally  its  meaning,  whether  applied  to 
classes  of  men,  or  to  individuals.  When  ap- 
plied to  God,  it  denotes  all  that  distinguishes 
him  from  anything  that  is  created.  Whatever 
is  peculiar  to  the  Living  God,  belongs  to  his 
name.  Its  most  correct,  simple  and  comprehen- 
sive definition  is,  "  all  that  whereby  he  maketh 
himself  known." 

He  says  of  himself,  "  I  am  that  I  am,  that  is 
my  name."  He  assumes  the  name,  Jehovah  ; 
this  is  properly  the  incommunicable  name  of 
God.  The  Jews  had  such  a  reverence  for  it 
that  it  was  with  them  an  unuttered  name ;  and 
it  is  worthy  of  remark  that  there  are  no  epithets 
associated  with  this  name  more  than  two  or 
three  times  in  the  Scriptures.  Every  peculiar 
appellation  which  God  assumes,  belongs  to  that 
name,  because  by  that  appellation  he  makes 
something  known.  If  he  speaks  of  himself,  as 
"  The  Only  Wise,"  he  teaches  us  his  perfect 
and  unerring  wisdom ;  if  as  Almighty,  he  teaches 
us  that  he  acts  without  constraint,  and  that  he 
can  do  all  things.  Whenever  the  distinctive 
name  of  Jehovah  is  given  as  the  ground  of  con- 
fidence for  some  good  being  performed  to  the 
church,  it  has  reference  to  that  proclamation 
made  to  Moses  when  he    covered  him  by  his 


m^ 


90  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


hand  in  the  rock  of  Horeb,  and  passed  by  and 
proclaimed  his  name  in  the  fulness  and  ampli- 
tude of  his  wondrous  and  adorable  attributes. 

There  was  no  appeal  to  God's  nayne  by  the 
cliurch,  prior  to  this,  as  ground  of  her  confidence. 
It  is  in  view  of  this  proclamation  that  she  ex- 
claims, "  Do  not  abhor  us  for  thy  name's  sake ;" 
and  that  David  prays,  "  For  thy  name's  sake,  O 
Jehovah,  pardon  mine  iniquity,  for  it  is  great. 
There  was  a  proportion  between  God's  great 
pardon,  and  his  great  name. 

The  name  of  God  expresses  great  and  won- 
drous thoughts.  It  is  a  name  of  solemn,  of  aw- 
ful, yet  of  blessed  import.  It  points  to  the  in- 
finite, eternal,  and  unchangeable  One.  It  points 
to  the  father  of  mercies  and  the  God  of  all  grace. 
It  points  to  our  Father  who  is  in  heaven.  O, 
weigh  the  vast  meaning  of  his  name,  who  is  able 
to  save  and  to  destroy,  whose  favor  is  life,  whose 
frown  is  death  ! 

We  pray  that  his  name  may  be  hallowed.  To 
hallow  is  to  sanctify.  But  as  God  cannot  be  sanc- 
tified, or  made  more  holy  than  he  is,  we  must  use 
the  term  with  some  restriction.  To  hallow 
God's  name,  is  to  magnify,  to  honor,  to  glorify 
it;  as  it  is  witten  in  the  prophecy,  "  Sanctify  the 
Lord  of  Hosts  himself,  and  let  him  be  your  fear, 
and  let  him  be  your  dread."  When  we  use 
the  expression,  it  denotes  our  ascribing  to  him 


THE  NAME   OF   GOD   HALLOWED.  91 


all  holiness,  goodness,  justice,  mercy,  and  truth, 
forever  enriching  and  adorning  his  great  and 
glorious  nature.  It  denotes  our  esteem  of  him, 
our  conviction  that  he  is  worthy  of  our  confi- 
dence ;  and  when  we  thus  sanctify  him,  he  will 
not  only  be  our  fear  and  our  dread,  but  our 
Sanctuary  in  the  day  of  trouble. 

It  denotes,  too,  the  spirit  with  which  we 
should  worship  him.  Its  language  is,  "  Give 
unto  the  Lord  the  glory  due  unto  his  name  ; 
bring  an  offering,  and  come  into  his  courts.  Oh, 
worship  the  Lord,  in  the  beauty  of  holiness ; 
fear  before  him,  all  the  earth."  The  Scriptures 
often  speak  of  the  glory  of  God,  and  of  glorify- 
ing his  name.  Here  the  word  is  hallowed., 
because  his  holiness  comprises  the  beauty  and 
excellence  of  his  nature,  and  constitutes  the 
true  glory  of  his  attributes.  The  Seraphim 
over  the  mercy  seat  covered  their  faces  with 
their  two  wings,  and  cried  one  to  another  and 
said,  "  Holy,  holy,  holy,  is  the  Lord  of  Hosts ; 
the  w  hole  earth  is  full  of  his  glory." 

In  expressing  this  first  and  greatest  desire  of 
every  devout  mind,  it  is  of  some  importance  to 
institute  the  inquiry,  How  is  so  desirable  an  end  to 
he  brought  about  1  We  confess  our  inability  to 
honor  God  aright.  We  ask  that  he  would  make 
us  fit  to  honor  him,  and  to  give  him  the  glory 
which  is  due.     This  is  done,  in  the  first  place. 


92  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


by  our  becoming  acquainted  loith  God.  Many  a 
man  fails  of  receiving  due  honor  from  his  fellow- 
men,  because  he  is  not  known.  It  needs  but  to 
become  acquainted  with  his  excellences,  in  order 
to  love  and  respect  him.  His  excellences  may 
be  unpresuming  and  retired,  and  need  searching 
out ;  or  they  may  be  obscured  by  his  humble 
condition  or  covered  by  a  veil  of  prejudice,  and 
require  to  be  inspected  by  an  impartial  eye,  that 
they  may  be  appreciated.  No  man  honors  God, 
while  he  remains  ignorant  of  him.  Paul  repre- 
sents it  as  the  crime  of  the  heathen,  that  "  they 
did  not  like  to  retain  God  in  their  knowledge ;" 
and  so  far  from  hallowing  his  name,  they  "  wor- 
shipped and  .served  the  creature."  It  is  the  sin 
of  all  ungodly  men,  that  "  there  is  none  among 
them  that  understandeth,  none  that  seeketh  after 
God."  Pharaoh,  in  his  pride,  said,  "  I  know  not 
the  Lord,  neither  will  I  let  Israel  go."  It  was 
the  Saviour's  reproach  of  the  Jews,  that  "  they 
knew  not  Him  that  sent  him."  No  other  know- 
ledge, however  extensive  and  minute,  will 
qualify  us  to  respect  and  honor  God,  where  the 
knowledge  of  God  himself  is  wanting.  Let  the 
profoundest  philosopher  examine  the  whole  cir- 
cle of  human  knowledge;  let  him  study  every 
art  and  science;  let  him  penetrate  the  bowels 
of  the  earth,  and  the  caverns  of  the  ocean;  let 
him  number  the  stars,  and  trace  the  revolution 


THE  NAME   OF   GOD  HALLOWED,  93 


of  the  planets ;  and  if  he  dives  not  deeper,  and 
ascends  not  higher  than  this,  the  humblest 
peasant,  whose  devout  study  is  to  become  ac- 
quainted with  God,  better  honors  and  hallows 
his  great  and  holy  name. 

Mournful  to  confess,  the  religious  worship  of 
not  a  few  is  degrading  to  the  Deity;  on  their 
very  altars  is  found  the  inscription,  "  To  the  un- 
knoion  God  f^  The  knowledge  of  God  opens  to 
the  mind  the  only  honor  which  He  will  accept, 
the  only  honor  the  creature  is  capable  of  express- 
ing, and  the  only  way  of  expressing  that  honor. 
We  respect  the  Deity,  from  a  consideration  of 
his  divine  excellence;  nor  can  we  fail,  at  least, 
to  respect  him,  if  we  know  him.  To  dishonor 
him  when  we  know  what  he  is,  were  impiety 
bordering  on  the  hardihood  of  devils. 

The  name  of  God  is  also  hallowed  by  a  rever- 
ential treatment  of  Him  in  our  thoughts,  words,  and 
actio7is.  "  As  a  man  thinketh  in  his  heart,  so  is 
he."  Low,  unworthy  thoughts  of  God,  will  lead 
neither  to  complacency,  gratitude,  nor  honor. 
Whence  is  it  that  multitudes  who  once  had  low 
and  unworthy  thoughts  of  God,  now  regard 
Him  with  solemn  and  affectionate  reverence, 
but  that  they  do  justice  to  Him  in  their  own 
reflections,  and  that  of  all  beings  in  the  universe, 
He  stands  the  first  in  their  esteem? 

With  such  thoughts  of  God,  we  must  reverence 


94  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


him  with  our  lips.  Our  words  must  be  words  of 
deep  reverence,  sincere  piety,  and  grateful  love, 
whether  we  speak  to  him  or  of  him.  The  care- 
less and  frequent  mention  of  his  name  in  our  fa- 
miliar intercourse  with  our  fellow-men;  occa- 
sional exclamations,  however  heedless,  which 
contain  that  great  name,  and  which  are  the 
effect  of  sudden  passion  or  surprise;  as  well  as 
solemn  appeals  to  Almighty  God,  under  no  sense 
of  his  majesty  and  purity ;  are  plain  violations 
of  the  true  import  of  this  prayer. 

There  is  one  way  of  dishonoring  God,  of  which 
I  need  say  nothing,  except  to  bring  it  to  your  re- 
membrance. I  mean  profane  swearing.  God 
will  judge  the  swearer,  and  "  will  not  hold  him 
guiltless."  It  is  terrible  to  think  of  a  man  who 
learns  to  swear  before  he  learns  to  pray.  Curs- 
ing and  blaspheming  are  the  employment  of 
devils.  The  profane  swearer  will  have  enough 
of  it  in  hell.  When  the  worm  gnaws  and  the 
fire  rages,  he  will  "  curse  God  and  look  up- 
ward." 

A  reverential  treatment  of  God  in  our  thoughts 
and  words,  will  lead  to  the  same  treatment  in 
our  conduct.  If  we  would  venerate  God,  we 
should  be  watchful  not  to  offend  him  ;  nor  dis- 
honor him  by  our  deportment ;  nor  bring  his 
cause  into  contempt,  and  cause  his  name  to  be 
evil  spoken  of     A  dutiful  child  wall  avoid  those 


THE  NAME  OF   GOD   HALLOWED.  95 


courses  of  conduct  which  bring  reproach  and 
dishonor  upon  his  parents;  so  ought  the  chil- 
dren of  God  to  be  afraid  of  sin  for  his  name's 
sake.  God  is  honored  when  our  deportment 
exhibits  every  mark  of  respect  and  honor  ;  he  is 
venerated  when  our  conduct  venerates  him; 
and  his  name  is  hallowed  when  "  our  light  so 
shines  before  men,  that  others,  seeing  our  good 
works,  glorify  our  Father  who  is  in  heaven." 

There  are  not  wanting  those  who  accost  the 
Deity  under  the  most  respectful  titles ;  they 
call  him  God — Lord  God — Great  and  Glorious 
God — yet  they  disobey  his  laws,  and  mean  to 
disobey  them.  The  Saviour  animadverted  upon 
this  inconsistency  when  he  demanded  of  such 
persons,  "  Why  call  ye  me  Lord,  Lord,  and  do 
not  the  things  which  I  say  ?"  There  is  no 
greater  inconsistency  than  to  acknowledge  his 
rightful  authority,  and  at  the  same  time  practi- 
cally disown  his  claims.  To  pray  that  his  name 
be  hallowed,  yet  not  hallow  it  by  our  own  obe- 
dience, is  an  indignity  which  reason,  conscience, 
and  decency  instinctively  revolt  at.  Men  may 
be  better  in  their  own  view,  they  may  ap- 
pear better  in  the  sight  of  their  fellow-men, 
and  they  may  think  they  appear  better  in  the 
sight  of  God,  by  an  ostensible  acknowledgment 
of  his  claims,  while  they  practically  disavow 
them ;  but  it  is  an  expression  of  homage  which 


96  THE  MERCY   SEAT, 


God  does  not  regard ;  nor  do  men  regard  it, 
when  once  they  discover  its  disgraceful  incon- 
sistency. The  name  of  God  is  hallowed  before 
the  world,  only  as  his  claims  are  practically 
honored,  and  their  excellence  exemplified.  Un- 
friendly as  the  world  is  to  these  claims,  it  will 
no  lono^er  hiss  and  was:  its  head  in  derision  and 
contempt  of  them,  when  it  sees  them  exhibited 
and  acted  out  in  the  deportment  of  those  who 
profess  to  regard  them. 

God's  name  is  hallowed  by  a  suitable  regard 
to  all  his  institutions  and  ordinances.  The 
knowledge  and  worship  of  God  are  preserved 
in  our  world  by  a  watchful  and  zealous  regard 
for  his  own  institutions.  Under  the  Mosaic 
economy,  these  were  greatly  multiplied  ;  under 
the  Christian  dispensation,  they  are  less  numer- 
ous, and  more  simple.  Men  have  added  to 
them  by  their  own  traditions,  but  they  are  ad- 
ditions subversive  of  Christianity  and  of  the 
simplicity  that  is  in  Christ.  Christianity  weeps 
over  this  perversion  of  her  rites,  and  in  the  mul- 
titude and  confusion  of  these  outward  ceremo- 
nies, may  well  adopt  the  lamentation  of  Mary, 
when  she  said,  "  They  have  taken  away  my 
Lord,  and  I  know  not  where  they  have  laid 
him."  They  are  the  mere  outward  defences  of 
"another  gospel,"  from  which  the  indwelling 
Spirit  of  Christ  has  retired,  and  his  glory  departed. 


THE  NAME   OF    GOD    HALLOWED.  97 


Just  as  "  truth  is  in  order  to  goodness,"  insti- 
tutions are  for  the  sake  of  principles.  And  such 
are  all  the  institutions  of  a  pure  Christian- 
ity. The  institutions  which  the  Great  Founder 
of  religion  has  appointed,  coincide  with  the 
great  end  for  which  the  entire  system  of  Chris- 
tianity itself  was  revealed.  They  are  the  visi- 
ble symbols  of  great  and  important  principles, 
and  the  means  by  which  they  are  advanced  and 
perpetuated.  The  gospel  cannot  live  without 
them.  Prostrate  these,  and  you  exterminate 
true  religion  from  the  earth.  They  are  the  bul- 
warks which  its  enemies  never  fail  to  attack, 
in  order  to  bring  it  into  neglect  and  contempt. 
Men  who  would  honor  the  name  of  God,  and 
render  it  a  hallowed  name,  will  have  a  care 
neither  to  neglect,  pervert,  or  corrupt  these  sa- 
cred institutions.  The  more  punctually  and 
constantly  they  are  observed,  the  more  are  they 
rendered  amiable  and  honorable  in  the  eyes  of 
the  world,  and  the  more  do  they  give  honor  to 
that  Great  Being  who  is  their  Author.  When 
the  soul  is  elevated  with  a  view  of  his  grand- 
eur, rapt  in  the  contemplations  of  his  glory, 
melted  under  impressions  of  his  love,  and  gives 
utterance  to  its  admiration,  its  gratitude,  its  con- 
trition, its  hope,  its  confidence,  and  joy,  in  those 
varied  acts  of  worship  which  the  institutions  of 
the  gospel  require ;  she  sympathizes  with  the 
5 


98  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


homage  paid  to  him  by  higher  worlds,  and  adds 
her  testimony  to  theirs  that  his  name  is  above 
every  name. 

Tlie  name  of  God  is  also  hallowed  hy  the  ex- 
hibitions which  he  himself  makes  of  his  oitn  excel- 
lence. It  is  impossible  to  add  to  the  immeasur- 
able plenitude  of  God.  It  is  not  for  creatures 
to  make  him  greater,  or  better  than  he  is;  nor 
can  God  himself  do  this,  because  his  essential 
perfections  are  every  way  infinite. 

But  though  the  perfection  of  the  Divine  nature 
admits  of  no  accessions,  there  may  be  accessions 
to  those  manifestations  of  the  Divine  nature  which 
are  made  in  the  works  of  providence  and  grace. 
There  is  an  intrinsic  excellence  of  the  Deity, 
which  admits  of  no  augmentation ;  and  there  is 
a  manifested  excellence  which  admits  of  aug- 
mentations that  are  boundless.  From  the  rich- 
ness, the  fulness  of  the  Divine  character,  there 
may  issue  streams,  emanations,  a  diffusion  and 
resplendency  which  may  refresh  and  enlighten 
the  world,  and  make  the  name  of  God  great 
and  glorious  in  the  eyes  of  angels  and  men. 

When  we  pray  that  God's  name  may  be  hallow- 
ed, we  pray  that  he  himself  would  make  it  holy 
and  venerable,  by  more  and  more  extended 
and  refulgent  exhibitions  of  his  glory.  He  can 
impart  to  those  exhibitions  continual  growth  and 
enlargement,  and  all  that  perpetually  progress- 


THE  NAME   OF   GOD  HALLOWED.  99 


ive  augmentation  of  which  they  are  susceptible. 
He  can  do  it  by  his  providence  ;  directing  and 
governing,  and  overruling  all  the  affairs  of  men, 
and  so  bring  himself  into  view,  that  they  shall 
see  his  hand,  and  acknowledge  and  honor  him 
as  God  over  all.  He  can  do  it  by  his  Spirit; 
enlightening  the  minds  and  subduing  the  hearts 
of  those  who  are  strangers  to  the  power  of  his 
grace,  and  sanctifying  and  comforting  his  own 
people,  so  that  they  shall  everywhere  rejoice  in 
him,  and  "  exalt  his  name  together."  He  can 
do  it  by  his  mercies  ;  he  can  do  it  by  his  judg- 
ments ;  he  can  do  it  by  his  ministers ;  he  can 
do  it  by  his  friends ;  and  he  can  do  it  by  his 
enemies;  making  all  their  designs  and  purposes 
and  efforts,  either  a  voluntary  or  involuntary 
instrumentality  in  promoting  his  own  ends,  and 
magnifying  his  great  name. 

When  men  have  dishonored  him,  when  his 
cause  and  glory  have  been  lost  sight  of,  and  for- 
gotten ;  wdien  his  name  has  been  profaned,  his  al- 
tars demolished,  the  ark  of  Israel's  God  carried 
captive  and  setup  in  the  temple  of  idols;  when 
his  church  has  been  covered  with  sackcloth,  and 
his  ministers  have  stood  between  the  porch  and 
the  altar  to  bewail  her  desolations;  many  a  time 
has  he  thus  plucked  his  right  hand  out  of  his  bo- 
som, made  his  arm  bare,  and  "  remembered  his 
holy  name."    And  notwithstanding  all  that  he  has 


100  THE  MERCY   SEAT, 


done,  there  will  yet  be  brighter  illustrations  of 
his  glory,  and  his  name  be  more  universally  ex- 
alted ;  "  endure  forever ;  be  continued  as  long 
as  the  sun  ;  and  men  shall  be  blessed  in  him, 
and  all  nations  shall  call  him  blessed." 

There  is  another  general  inquiry,  the  answer 
to  which  may  serve  still  further  to  illustrate  the 
import  of  this  petition :  Why  does  this  petition 
hold  so  high  a  place  iri  this  summary  of  prayer  ; 
and  why  is  it  so  desirable  and  important  that  God's 
na^ne  should  be  hallowed  ? 

We  cannot  answer  these  inquiries  as  they 
deserve  to  be  answered.  They  bring  us  near 
the  ineffable  glory,  and  make  us  veil  our  faces, 
as  in  the  presence  of  the  God  who  is  invisible. 
There  is  nothing  of  which  He  himself  is  so  jeal- 
ous, nothing  which  He  regards  so  sensitively,  as 
the  glory  of  his  name.  We  would  not  have  our 
poor  name  suffer  reproach  ;  much  less  will  the 
God  of  heaven  allow  his  honors  to  be  sullied. 
The  rather  is  he  immutably  resolved  to  secure, 
defend,  and  advance  them,  and  by  all  means, 
and  at  every  sacrifice.  The  Lord  God  is  a  jeal- 
ous God  ;  he  will  not  give  his  glory  to  another. 
He  knows  himself.  He  forms  a  just  estimate  of 
his  own  character  and  station.  He  cannot  but 
treat  himself  according  to  the  just  conceptions 
he  has  of  his  own  greatness  and  excellency.  He 
cannot  deny  himself,  nor  be  indifferent  to  the 


THE  NAME  OF   GOD   HALLOWED,  101 


manner  in  which  his  creatures  are  affected  to- 
ward him.  Great  and  eternal  interests  depend 
upon  the  honors  of  his  name.  We  shall  dwell  a 
few  moments  upon  the  reasons  which  justify 
these  general  remarks. 

Our  Heavenly  Father's  name  and  honor  are 
justly  great  and  endeared.  It  is  the  greatest, 
most  endeared  name  in  the  universe.  Angels 
cannot  bear  to  see  it  dishonored,  because  he  is 
God  their  Maker  and  Sovereign;  his  children 
cannot,  because  he  is  their  Father,  and  they  have 
all  the  honorable,  honored  sentiments  of  children. 
The  Eternal  One,  the  Mighty  God,  the  Ever- 
lasting Father — he  who  is  himself  the  beginning, 
and  measure,  and  end  of  all  that  exists,  and 
from  whom  every  creature  has  received  all  that 
it  is,  and  has — deserves  the  homage  he  claims. 
The  Being  whose  nature,  purposes,  will,  and 
word,  are  such  as  his,  is  worthy  the  hallowed 
exaltation  for  which  his  people  are  taught  to 
pray.  The  immense  and  inftnite  Deity,  who  is 
everywhere,  and  whose  being  and  presence  are 
separated  by  no  distance,  and  confined  by  no 
space,  is  worthy  to  dwell  in  the  thoughts,  have 
a  throne  in  the  heart,  be  extolled  by  the  lips, 
and  shine  forth  in  the  life  of  creatures  who  are 
enfolded  in  the  arms,  and  carried  in  the  bosom  of 
his  infinity !  The  holy  Being,  the  splendor  of 
whose  purity  dazzles  the  sun,  and  renders  heaven 


102  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


itself  impure  J  compared  with  Him,  is  worthy  to 
be  liallowed,  not  only  by  man  that  is  born  of  a 
woman,  and  unclean,  but  by  all  the  angels  of 
God.  The  all-powerful  God  may  well  command 
the  respect  and  fear  of  creatures  whose  founda- 
tion is  in  the  dust,  and  who  dwell  in  tabernacles 
of  clay.  He  whose  watchful  eye  equally  discerns 
whatever  passes  in  the  thickest  darkness,  and  in 
the  clearest  light,  who  knows  intuitively  all  that 
can  be  known,  and  who  "  destroys  the  wisdom 
of  the  wise,  and  bringeth  to  naught  the  under- 
standing of  the  prudent,"  ought  not  in  vain  to 
look  down  from  heaven  upon  the  sons  of  men,  to 
see  if  they  respect  his  intelligence,  and  bow 
humbly  before  the  dictates  of  his  wisdom.  The 
good  and  gracious  God,  who  loves  the  weak  and 
guilty  inhabitants  of  this  lower  world,  who  bow- 
ed his  high  heavens,  and  took  their  nature,  in 
that  complex  nature  suffered  and  died,  that  they 
might  not  suffer  and  die,  may  well  challenge,  for 
his  own  sake,  every  expression  of  grateful  hom- 
age. Sovereign  honors  belong,  too,  to  the  just 
God ;  and  earth  and  heaven  should  resound 
with  "  the  song  of  Moses,  as  well  as  the  song  of 
the  Lamh.'" 

Why  should  not  his  character  and  conduct 
appear,  as  well  as  he,  without  a  stain  ?  What  tur- 
pitude and  imperfection  will  be  disclosed  in  the 
unfoldings  of  his  nature  ?     Why  should  his  excel- 


THE   NAME   OF   GOD   HALLOWED.  103 


lence  be  obscured,  his  glory  fade  in  retirement, 
his  exalted  nature  wither  in  solitude,  and  never 
shine  forth  in  their  appropriate  splendor  ?  In  a 
world  that  lieth  in  wickedness,  his  holy  name 
has  been  subjected  to  the  foulest  stains ;  nor 
will  it  ever  appear  in  cloudless  glory,  dissipating 
the  darkness  by  which  it  has  been  enveloped  by 
the  ignorance,  misconception,  and  wickedness 
of  men,  until  it  is  seen  as  it  is,  and  everywhere 
hallowed  as  the  greatest,  and  best,  and  most  en- 
deared name. 

That  God's  name  should  be  hallowed,  is  also 
demanded  by  the  great  interests  of  holiness  in  our 
world.  Holiness  consists  in  conformity  to  God. 
This  was  the  character  and  imasre  in  w  hich  man 
w^as  first  created ;  this  the  character  from  which 
he  fell ;  this  the  character  in  which  he  is  re- 
newed by  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  in  which,  when 
once  renewed,  he  perseveres  to  life  eternal. 
This  is  the  character  of  heaven.  Heaven  and 
earth  have  but  one  and  the  same  religion,  though 
they  differ  in  degree  ;  and  that  religion  consists 
in  conformity  to  the  moral  character  of  God,  as 
the  fruit  of  his  Spirit. 

In  the  economy  of  nature  and  grace,  there  are 
established  laws  and  uniform  connections.  Upon 
nothing  does  the  holiness  of  creatures  so  much 
depend,  as  its  instrumental  cause,  as  the  knowl- 
edge of  God.     There  can  be  no  more  conform- 


104  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


ity  to  God  in  any  mind,  than  there  is  a  knowl- 
edge of  his  true  character.  Truth  is  the  great 
instrument  of  conversion  to  men  who  are  dead 
in  sin,  and  the  great  means  of  sanctification  to 
the  converted.  And  it  is  by  those  very  means 
by  which  men  hallow  the  name  of  God,  and  by 
which  he  hallows  his  own  name,  that  the  truth 
is  brought  home  to  their  own  bosoms,  and 
achieves  its  greatest  conquests.  It  is  in  the  in- 
telligent and  devout  utterance  of  the  petition, 
*'  Hallowed  be  thy  name,"  that  the  soul  catches 
a  portion  of  that  heavenly  spirit  which  she  as- 
cribes to  her  great  heavenly  Parent,  and  which 
she  thus  desires  may  be  everywhere  exhibited 
and  made  known.  It  is  thus  that  she  rises  to 
the  character  of  that  favored  and  hallowed  so- 
ciety, who  "  all  come  in  the  unity  of  the  faith, 
and  of  the  knowledge  of  the  Son  of  God,  into 
the  measure  of  the  stature  of  the  fulness  of 
Christ,"  and  "  with  open  face,  beholding  as  in  a 
glass  the  glory  of  the  Lord,  are  changed  into  the 
same  image,  from  glory  to  glory,  even  as  by  the 
Spirit  of  the  Lord."  As  well  might  we  enjoy 
health  without  aliment,  or  vigor  without  exer- 
cise, as  spirituality  of  mind,  in  the  neglect  of  the 
means  of  spirituality.  We  become  enriched  by 
the  communications  of  heavenly  grace,  only  as 
the  storehouse  of  our  spiritual  perceptions  and 
thoughts  is  receiving  new  accessions.    Not  until 


THE  NAME   OF   GOD   HALLOWED.  105 


the  "  good  treasure  of  the  heart"  is  supplied  from 
these  divine  sources,  does  it  become  a  sacred 
repository  of  "  good  things."  It  is  here  we  find 
the  materials  and  excitements  of  holy  and  de- 
vout affections.  Here  is  the  intimacy  and  de- 
light of  intercourse  with  God.  Here  we  bewail 
and  mortify  our  worst,  and  give  scope  to  our 
best  affections.  Here  we  become  acquainted 
with  ourselves,  our  state,  our  temper,  our  dispo- 
sitions, our  character,  and,  under  the  influence 
of  the  sanctifying  Spirit,  become  more  humble, 
more  watchful,  more  sensible  of  our  dependence 
on  the  grace  of  God,  and  more  devoted  to  his 
glory.  How  many  millions  among  the  perfected 
spirits  of  the  just,  and  millions  more  on  their  way 
to  that  world  of  bliss,  who  connect  their  purest 
recollections,  and  their  most  purifying  hopes  and 
anticipations  with  hallowing  and  seeing  hallowed 
the  great  and  endeared  name  of  their  Father  who 
is  in  heaven ! 

It  is  in,  and  by  these  contemplations,  that  the 
holiness  of  heaven  its6lf  is  progressive  and  per- 
petual. Take  away  from  the  bosom  of  those 
celestial  inhabitants,  those  strong  affections 
which  arise  from  their  perceptions  of  the  divine 
nature  ;  separate  from  their  present  character 
those  deep  and  adoring,  and  grateful  emotions 
which  flow  forth  from  their  perpetually  enlarg- 
ing views  of  the  adorable  Godhead;  and  most 
5* 


106  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


sensibly  do  you  abate  their  intense  and  high  ad- 
miration of  his  infinite  excellence,  and  the  grow- 
ing ecstacy  of  their  everlasting  song. 

Inseparable  from  these  suggestions  also  is  the 
thought  that  the  happiiiess  of  creatures  requires 
that  God's  name  should  be  hallowed.  The  time 
was,  when  there  was  nothing  in  existence  save 
the  infinite  God.  Not  more  is  he  the  beginning 
and  source  of  all  creatures,  than  of  all  created 
good.  He  has  assigned  to  every  one  of  the  hu- 
man family  his  sphere,  his  mode,  his  period  of 
existence,  till  they  all  return  to  their  final  des- 
tiny— the  dust  to  the  earth  whence  it  was  taken, 
the  spirit  to  God  who  gave  it.  When  his  period 
of  existence  on  the  earth  is  ended,  then  that 
great  day  of  eternity  will  begin,  when  all  the 
holy  will  be  gathered  together,  and  return  to 
him  who  made  and  redeemed  them,  to  rest  for- 
ever in  the  bosom  of  his  love,  "  the  seat  of  bless- 
edness, the  centre  of  repose."  He  is  the  su- 
preme happiness  and  end  of  man,  the  source 
and  fulness  of  all  his  joy.  The  world  is  made 
for  man,  but  man  himself  is  made  for  God.  The 
soul  which  God  has  given  him,  no  sensual  de- 
lights can  content  or  satisfy ;  it  breathes  after 
purer  joys,  and  happiness  more  enduring.  Nor 
can  it  be  satisfied  except  with  God  himself.  To 
know  God,  to  love  God,  to  possess  and  enjoy 
God,  is  the  end  to  which  his  immortal  existence 


THE  NAME  OF  GOD  HALLOWED.        107 


aspires,  and  without  which,  it  is  impossible  for 
it  to  be  a  happy,  joyous  existence.  It  is  rest- 
less, until  it  rests  in  him;  joyless,  until  it  be- 
comes partaker  of  his  joy. 

And  hoiv  do  we  become  partakers  of  his  joy, 
except  by  seeing  his  nature  and  perfections  un- 
folded, his  name  hallowed,  and  ourselves  de- 
lighted and  happy  in  these  manifestations  of  his 
glory  ?  There  is  something  in  the  divine  nature, 
not  merely  for  the  employment  of  our  intellec- 
tual powers,  but  for  the  gratification  of  t)ur  most 
exalted  and  spiritual  affections.  Let  God  be 
brought  into  view,  and  a  holy  mind  will  be 
happy ;  let  God  be  withdrawn,  and  it  is  miser- 
able. The  happiest  moment  of  the  Christian's 
life,  is  when  he  enjoys  the  most  enlarged  and 
most  impressive  views  of  God,  and  dwells  with 
adoring  wonder  on  his  boundless  and  unsearch- 
able perfections.  Nothing  can  make  him  miser- 
able, while  the  glory  of  the  divine  character,  and 
"  the  light  of  the  divine  countenance,"  is  lifted 
up  upon  him;  everywhere  without  this,  there 
remains  a  fearful  blank,  a  chasm  which  the  cre- 
ated universe  cannot  fill.  Here  the  understand- 
ing is  satisfied  ;  conscience  is  at  peace,  through 
atoning  blood ;  and  the  heart  finds  repose  and 
joy.  The  understanding  is  gratified  with  truths 
into  which  angels  desire  to  look  ;  the  heart  is 
attracted  by  love  that  is  above  all  other  love; 


108  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


the  conscience,  though  more  sensitive,  is  at  the 
same  time  more  tranquil ;  and  the  very  imagi- 
nation feeds  on  all  that  is  suhlime  and  beautiful, 
because  it  is  great  and  lovely.  The  tear  of  af- 
fliction is  wiped  away.  Sorrow  and  sighing 
there  find  their  true  solace.  Darkness  is  chased 
by  light,  and  the  streams  that  embitter,  are  for- 
gotten in  the  joys  that  flow. 

Just  in  the  measure  in  which  God's  name  is 
hallowed  by  us  and  by  our  fellow-men,  are  these 
sources  'of  happiness  found  within  our  own 
bosoms,  and  diffused  around  us.  The  Christian 
is  greatly  comforted  with  the  thought,  that  his 
Heavenly  Father's  name  will  be  hallowed,  be- 
cause he  discovers  in  this  assurance  the  pleni- 
tude of  joy  to  himself,  and  this  barren  and  oth- 
erwise joyless  creation.  When  worn  out  with 
pains  and  labors,  when  sick  with  the  agitating 
excitements  of  earth ;  he  forgets  his  cares  and 
griefs,  as  he  goes  to  bow  before  the  throne  and 
say,  "  Our  Father,  who  art  in  heaven,  hallowed 
he  thy  name .'"  It  is  quietude  to  his  fears,  balm 
to  his  bleeding  heart,  peace  to  all  its  strifes, 
and  hope  and  joy  amid  all  its  depressions,  if 
that  name  may  but  be  hallowed.  If  created 
happiness  is  to  be  estimated  from  the  purity, 
sublimity,  and  sufficiency  of  its  source,  from  (he 
greatness  of  its  joys,  and  from  the  extent  of  its 
duration,  here  its  source  is  the  infinite  God,  its 


THE  NAME   OF   GOD   HALLOWED.  109 


joys  the  delights  which  flow  from  seeing  him 
and  being  like  him,  its  duration  his  own  bound- 
less eternity. 

Thus  dear  are  the  name  and  honor  of  God  to 
his  people.  Thus  true  is  it  that  holiness  is  the 
creature's  greatest  glory;  sin  his  shame  and 
everlasting  disgrace.  Thus  true  is  it  that  God 
himself  is  the  soul's  highest  good,  and  that  those 
who  glorify,  will  enjoy  him  forever.  They  will 
enter  into  and  rejoice  in  his  joy,  shine  in  his 
splendor ;  and  in  a  little  while,  unspeakably  more 
than  they  have  honored  him,  be  honored  by  him, 
and  receive  from  his  hands  their  unfiding  crown, 
their  robes  of  immortality.  It  should  be  our 
desire  above  all  things,  that  his  name  should 
have  the  glory ;  come  what  will,  that  his  name 
stand  forth   in  untarnished,  augmented  lustre. 

Wo  be  to  the  man  who  cannot  say  from  the 
heart,  "  Hallowed  be  thy  name  !"  And  wo  be 
to  him  who  utters  this  request,  yet  makes  no 
scruple  of  dishonoring  the  name  of  God,  pro- 
faning it  at  heart,  and  bringing  his  contempt  of 
it  to  God's  altars !  Let  it  be  the  reader's  concern 
that  his  heavenly  Father's  glory  be  the  object 
dearest  to  his  heart.  Let  his  name  be  hallowed, 
beloved,  and  declared,  and  its  sacred  impulse 
felt.  There  is  no  end  so  worthy  of  God  to  des- 
ignate, or  man  to  pursue.  Honored  he  will  be ; 
and  amid  all  the  disorder  of  this  world,  he  will 


110  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


bring  light  out  of  darkness,  and  make  crooked 
things  straight.  His  ardent  and  mighty  affect  ions 
concentrate  in  this  great  end,  and  "  the  zeal  of 
the  Lord  of  hosts  will  perform  this."  Jehovah 
hath  sworn  by  himself,  "  As  I  live,  the  whole 
earth  shall  be  filled  with  my  glory  !"  Creation, 
providence,  and  redemption  shall  honor  him. 
All  his  purposes  shall  be  unfolded;  all  liis  char- 
acter shall  be  made  known;  and  his  glory  shall 
never  cease  to  shine,  till  it  fill  the  earth  as  the 
waters  fill  the  sea. 

Delightful,  inexpressibly  delightful  thoughts 
are  these,  as  we  look  over  this  disordered  world. 
Everything  was  made  for  God.  And  was  not 
man  made  for  him  1  Were  the  pebble  and  the 
worm  made  for  him  ;  were  the  mountains,  the 
seas,  and  the  rivers  made  for  him  ;  were  the  at- 
mosphere, and  the  light  and  the  cattle  upon  a 
thousand  hills,  and  all  the  fowls  of  the  moun- 
tains, and  summer  and  winter,  and  seed  time 
and  harvest  made  for  him,  and  do  they  all  ful- 
fil their  destiny;  and  will  not  men  fulfil  a  des- 
tiny so  much  more  exalted  than  theirs  ?  Reader, 
you  were  made  for  God.  Why  then  will  you 
not  acknowledge  him  as  the  great  All  in  all, 
and  welcome  his  reign  in  you,  and  over  you  for- 
ever ?  Why  shall  not  his  honor  be  your  honor, 
his  kingdom  your  kingdom,  his  riches  your 
riches,  his  joy  your  joy  ?     There  is  a  silent  elo- 


THE   NAME   OF   GOD   HALLOWED.  Ill 


quence  in  the  heavens  and  in  the  earth,  as  they 
fulfil  their  courses  and  praise  their  mighty  Ma- 
ker, making  its  appeal  to  you  to  glorify  God  in 
your  bodies  and  spirits,  which  are  his.  There 
is  affecting  solicitude  revealed  in  that  sacred 
volume,  above  the  eloquence  of  nature,  when 
it  says,  "  O  that  men  would  praise  the  Lord  for 
his  goodness,  for  his  wonderful  works  to  the 
children  of  men  !"  There  is  a  tenderness  from 
the  cross  that  says,  "  Father,  I  will,  that  they 
also  whom  thou  hast  given  me,  may  be  with  me 
where  I  am,  that  they  may  behold  my  glory 
w^hich  thou  hast  given  me."  And  there  is  a 
universal  appeal,  like  the  voice  of  many  waters, 
and  as  the  voice  of  mighty  thunderings,  from 
"  every  creature  which  is  in  heaven  and  on  the 
earth,  and  under  the  earth,  and  such  as  are  in 
the  sea,  and  all  that  are  in  them,"  themselves 
saying,  "  Blessing,  and  honor,  and  glory,  and 
power,  be  unto  him  that  sitteth  upon  the  throne, 
and  unto  the  Lamb,  forever  and  ever,"  and  giv- 
ing utterance,  and  emphasis  to  the  demand, 
"  W7io  shall  not  fea7'  thee,  O  Lord,  and  glorify 
th?/  name  ?  for  thou  only  art  holy  !" 


CHAPTER  V. 


THE  KINGDOM  OF  GOD  ON  THE  EARTH. 


"€^  lingkm  €mtJ' 

There  is  a  wisdom  to  be  consulted  beyond 
our  wisdom,  a  glory  beyond  our  glory,  an  inter- 
est beyond  our  interest.  Hence  the  petition, 
"  Hallowed  be  thy  name."  The  next  great  ob- 
ject is  the  accomplishment  of  God's  purposes 
of  mercy  to  our  world — purposes  as  far  exceed- 
ing our  thoughts  as  his  capacity  exceeds  our 
own.  In  the  same  measure  in  which  we  desire 
that  his  name  should  be  hallowed,  will  the  prayer 
of  our  hearts  be,  "  th?/  kingdotn  cojne." 

The  solitary  Christian,  when  he  enters  into 
his  closet,  shuts  his  door,  and  prays  to  his  Father 
who  is  in  secret,  utters  no  request  more  fervent- 
ly than  this.  The  dwelling-places  of  Mount 
Zion,  on  which  God  creates  a  fire  and  a  smoke, 
everywhere  offering  up  their  thousand  sacrifices, 
repeat  no  petition  more  uniformly.  The  labori- 
ous minister  of  the  Gospel  in  Christian  lands, 


A 


THE   KINGDOM   OF   GOD   ON  THE   EARTH.  113 


and  the  faithful  missionary  of  the  cross  among 
the  heathen,  amid  all  that  is  alternately  encour- 
aging and  disheartening  in  their  prospects,  find 
no  nearer  or  more  exalted  communion  with  God, 
than  when  they  bow  at  his  footstool,  in  the  true 
purport  and  comprehensiveness  of  the  request, 
and  say,  "thy  kingdom  come."  The  church  of 
God  on  the  earth,  in  all  her  prayers,  in  all  her 
songs,  and  in  all  her  instructions  and  ordinances, 
utters  the  spirit,  and  urges  the  importance,  of 
this  petition.  Nay,  the  great  atoning,  interced- 
ing Saviour,  ascended  to  his  Father  and  our 
Father,  to  his  God  and  our  God,  is  still  uttering 
these  words,  and  with  the  same  tenderness  and 
emphasis  with  which  he  taught  them  to  his 
disciples,  "  thy  kingdom  come."  And  blessed 
be  his  name,  "  he  which  testifieth  these  things 
saith,  Surely  I  come  quickly ;  amen,  even  so, 
come.  Lord  Jesus  !" 

It  is  of  some  consequence  to  have  just  con- 
ceptions of  the  import  of  the  phrase,  ''The  king- 
dom of  God.''  The  whole  universe  is  the  empire 
of  Jehovah;  the  range  of  his  government  is 
limited  by  nothing  but  the  vast  circle  of  uni- 
versal existence.  "  The  Lord  hath  prepared  his 
throne  in  the  heavens,  and  his  kingdom  ruleth 
over  all."  "Thine,  O  Lord,  is  the  greatness, 
and  the  glory,  and  the  majesty ;  for  all  that  is 
in  the  heaven  and  earth  is  thine."     "Thine  is 


114  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


the  kingdom,  O  Lord !  thou  art  exalted  above 
all ;  thou  reignest  over  all !" 

This  universal  empire  has  not  been  maintain- 
ed without  a  struggle.  There  have  been,  and 
still  are,  rivals  for  the  throne — to  some  extent, 
successful  in  their  rivalship.  The  time  was, 
when  the  King  of  the  Universe,  not  only  control- 
led this  earth  and  all  the  planetary  worlds,  but 
ruled  in  the  hearts  of  every  order  of  intelligences ; 
angels  and  man  cheerfully  recognized  liis  authori- 
ty, and  celebrated  his  praise.  No  records  inform  us 
how  lonff  this  universal  dominion  continued  thus 
undisturbed.  One  mournful  fact  we  have  ascer- 
tained. In  the  far-distant  ages  of  the  past,  there 
was  a  revolt — a  revolt  in  heaven — a  revolt  among 
the  angels  of  God.  Great  multitudes  combined 
in  this  treasonable  enterprise,  "left  their  first  hab- 
itation," and  were  cast  out  on  some  remote  con- 
tinent, some  lower  region  of  the  universe,  where 
they  set  up  a  kingdom  of  their  own,  which  still 
exists,  and  is  the  great  rival  power  to  the  throne 
and  monarchy  of  God. 

Among  the  early  successes  of  this  revolt,  was 
the  fatal  seduction  of  the  human  family.  Placed 
as  our  first  parents  were  under  a  law,  the  penal- 
ty of  which  was  death  to  themselves  and  their 
posterity,  the  Prince  of  Darkness  did  not  fail  to 
see,  that  if  he  prevailed  in  enticing  them  from 
their  allegiance  to  the  Most  High,  he  would,  by 


THE  KINGDOM  OF  GOD  ON  THE   EARTH.  115 

this  act,  brino:  sin  and  ruin  upon  their  descend- 
ants.    He  did  entice  them ;  and  the  penalty  for 
this  first    offence    has    been  visited    upon    this 
fallen  race.     The  deed  was  done,  that  hoisted 
the  flood-gates  of  iniquity,  and  poured  its  desola- 
tions  through   every  successive  generation    of 
men.     Henceforth,   men  began  their  existence 
in  the  moral  likeness  of  their  fallen  parents,  and 
were  the  children  of  disobedience  and  wrath. 
A   kingdom   was    established,    and   grew,   that 
breathed  nothing  but  rebellion  against  the  Most 
High.     The  Great  Adversary  seemed  to  triumph. 
From  that  hour,  he  has  been  pushing  his  con- 
quests, from  age  to  age,  and  from  one  end  of  the 
world  to  the  other,   in   some   minds  holding  a 
partial  sway,  in  others  absolute  and  entire  do- 
minion ;  in  some  lands,  with  repulsed,  in  others, 
with  unrestrained  power. 

In  such  a  world,  and  amid  these  conflicts,  the 
God  of  heaven  has  set  up  a  kingdom,  in  which 
he  feels  the  deepest  interest,  because  his  own 
honor  is  staked  upon  its  successes,  and  because  it 
is  identified  with  those  high  interests  of  moral 
rectitude  of  which  he  is  the  vindicator  and 
guardian.  In  the  purpose  and  grace  of  its 
Founder,  this  kingdom  "  was  set  up  from  ever- 
lasting, or  ever  the  earth  was."  It  began  in  fact 
to  exist  immediately  after  the  fall  of  our  first 
parents;    its   beginning  was   small;    but   here 


i 


116  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


and  there  a  few  enlisted  under  its  banners, 
while  the  great  mass  of  men  remained  the  vas- 
sals of  the  Prince  of  darkness.  In  this  state  of 
depression,  sometimes  more,  and  sometimes  less 
comprehensive,  it  continued  during  the  patri- 
archal. Mosaic,  and  prophetic  ages.  Other 
kingdoms  rose  and  fell ;  but  this,  small  as  it  was, 
held  on  its  way,  and  though  its  glory  was  ob- 
scured, it  was  still  a  light  amid  surrounding 
darkness. 

But  the  time  had  come  when  an  important 
epoch  was  to  give  greater  character  and  promi- 
nence to  this  kingdom.  During  that  long  and 
humiliating  exile  of  the  ancient  church  in  Baby- 
lon, a  distinguished  prophet  was  raised  up,  who 
predicted  the  overthrow  of  her  captors;  fore- 
told the  rise  and  fall  of  the  Grecian  and  Per- 
sian empires ;  and  in  his  anticipations  of  the 
extent  and  durability  of  the  Roman  power,  uses 
this  remarkable  language,  "  In  these  days,  shall 
the  God  of  heaven  set  up  a  kingdom,  which  shall 
never  be  destroyed ;  and  the  kingdom  shall  not 
be  left  to  other  people,  but  it  shall  break  in 
pieces,  and  consume  all  these  kingdoms,  and  it 
shall  stand  forever."  After  the  Roman  empire 
was  established,  and  amid  the  glory  of  the  Au- 
gustan age,  the  distinguished  Personage  on 
whose  shoulders  the  government  of  this  king- 
dom was  to  rest,  made  his  appearance  in  our 


THE  KINGDOM  OF   GOD   ON  THE   EARTH.  117 


world ;  the  predicted  Messiah  was  born.  About 
thirty  years  after,  and  under  the  reign  of  Tibe- 
rius Caesar,  he  was  crucified  and  slain,  rose 
from  the  dead,  ascended  up  into  heaven,  estab- 
lished his  kingdom  on  the  earth  upon  a  broader 
basis,  and  began  to  reign  in  the  power  of  his 
own  truth  and  grace.  And  this  is  what  is 
meant  in  the  Scriptures  by  the  phrase,  "  The 
kingdom  of  God."  It  is  the  reign  of  Christ, 
the  empire  of  the  Messiah  as  David's  Son  and 
Lord,  on  the  earth. 

We  shall  have  still  clearer  views  of  this 
kingdom  by  specifying  some  of  its  great  feat- 
ures. It  possesses  very  remarkable  character- 
istics, and  is  unlike  every  other  kingdom. 

It  is  emphatically  distinguished  by  the  char- 
acter and  authority  of  its  Great  Prince.  "  Unto 
us  a  child  is  born,  unto  us  a  Son  is  given,  and 
his  name  shall  be  called  Wonderful,  Counsellor, 
the  Mighty  God,  the  Everlasting  Father,  the 
Prince  of  Peace."  In  every  view,  he  is  truly 
styled  Wonderful.  He  is  the  mysterious 
Word  who  was  in  the  beginning  "  with  God, 
and  was  God ;"  who  "  created  all  things,"  both 
visible  and  invisible,  whether  they  "  be  thrones, 
or  dominions,  or  principalities,  or  powers."  He 
possesses  inherent  and  high-born  honors;  his 
personal  glory  shines  forth  as  "  the  glory  of  the 
only  begotten  of  the  Father,  full  of  grace   and 


118  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


truth."  He  is  the  Seed  of  the  Woman,  and  yet 
the  Son  of  the  Highest.  He  stood  before  the 
bar  of  earthly  Princes,  and  yet  had  all  the  king- 
doms and  empires  of  this  world  at  his  disposal. 
He  "  came  not  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to 
minister ;"  yet  "  hath  he  on  his  vesture  and  on 
his  thigh,  a  name  written.  King  of  kings,  and 
Lord  of  lords."  His  palace  w^as  a  stable ;  his 
court  and  retinue  a  few  fishermen  and  tax-gath- 
erers ;  yet  angels  were  his  attendants,  and  the 
heaven  of  heavens  his  dwelling-place.  His 
crown  was  a  wreath  of  thorns,  his  sceptre  a 
reed,  his  throne  a  cross;  yet  in  his  hand  is  the 
sceptre  that  rules  the  nations,  on  his  head  are 
many  crowns,  and  his  throne  is  the  right  hand 
of  majesty  on  high. 

Nothing  can  be  more  absolute  than  the  authority 
which  Christ  exercises  in  this  his  own  kingdom ; 
nor  will  he  consent  to  exercise  any  other  than 
that  which  is  perfectly  uncontrolled.  At  all 
times,  under  all  circumstances,  and  in  its  whole 
procedure  and  administration,  this  kingdom  is 
subjected  to  him  as  its  great  and  sole  Monarch. 
Its  common  law  and  its  positive  statutes,  may 
be  prescribed  by  no  earthly  and  secular  power. 
In  no  one  particular  may  his  decisions  be  de- 
parted from.  No  alliance  with  any  of  the  em- 
pires of  earth  may  be  arranged  and  determined 
on,  that  shall  call  in  question,  or  in  the  least  de- 


THE  KINGDOM   OP   GOD   ON  THE   EARTH.  119 


gree  limit  his  exclusive  right  to  rule  in  his  own 
house.  Its  form,  its  officers,  its  worship,  its 
powers  and  privileges,  are  all  derived  from  him, 
exist  through  him  and  for  him,  and  are  all  to  be 
exercised  in  accordance  with  his  will.  No  in- 
difference on  the  one  hand,  nor  bitterness  of 
persecution  on  the  other;  no  rich  endowment 
and  no  depressing  poverty;  no  human  tradi- 
tions, however  venerable  for  age,  or  consecrated 
by  usage  and  custom ;  no  decisions  of  councils, 
or  of  popes,  however  arrogant  their  claims  to  in- 
fallibility ;  no  Christian  fathers,  no  daring  pre- 
tensions, of  an  aspiring  priesthood  in  any  one 
department  of  this  kingdom,  may  release  its 
members  from  his  paramount  authority,  impair 
his  right  to  be  heard  as  their  Prophet  and  Guide, 
and  to  be  obeyed  as  their  King  and  Head.  No 
revolutions  of  time,  no  change  in  the  relations 
this  kingdom  sustains  to  the  kingdoms  of  this 
world,  can  modify  its  relation  to  him  who  alone 
has  the  keys  of  the  house  of  David,  and  sits 
upon  his  throne.  It  is  more  than  all  human 
thrones,  and  councils,  and  laws,  and  decisions 
are  worth,  to  bind  what  the  Lord  Jesus  has  not 
bound,  or  loose  what  he  has  not  loosed.  The 
community  over  which  he  reigns  is  a  kingdom, 
because  it  is  a  monarchy  ;  it  has  but  one  ruler, 
and  no  vicegerents ;  its  ruler  is  God  in  the  per- 
son of  the  Lord  Jesus. 


120  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


Another  peculiarity  of  this  kingdom  will  be 
found  in  the  iwinciples  by  ivhicJi  it  is  administered. 
"  Justice  and  judgment  are  the  habitation  of 
God's  throne ;"  these  are  the  great  principles 
on  which  it  is  built  and  stands  firm ;  they  are 
the  place,  the  basis,  the  foundation  on  which  it 
rests.  Yet  is  there  a  wondrous  combination 
and  assemblage  of  the  divine  attributes  in  the 
administration  of  divine  justice,  as  dispensed  in 
this  kingdom.  "Mercy  and  trutharemettogether; 
righteousness  and  peace  have  kissed  each  other." 
These  apparentiy  jarring  perfections  of  the  di- 
vine nature  are  here  reconciled,  and  brought 
into  a  state  of  most  endeared  harmony.  Man's 
redemption  from  sin  and  hell  by  Jesus  Christ, 
presents  to  the  contemplation  of  the  universe 
the  union  of  principles  which  seem  to  be  abso- 
lutely irreconcilable.  That  perfect  and  uner- 
ring rectitude  which  is  an  essential  perfection 
of  the  divine  nature,  which  is  without  blemish 
and  without  change,  which  by  its  love  of  holi- 
ness and  hatred  of  sin,  is  the  strong  support  and 
unsleeping  guardian  of  holiness  in  the  universe, 
and  which  is  armed  with  such  terrors  against 
the  guilty;  instead  of  driving  its  rebellious  sub- 
jects from  the  face  of  the  throne  into  the  lake  of 
fire,  is  here  made  to  combine  with  that  heavenly 
mercy  which  stoops  to  sinners,  and  pardons,  jus 
tifies,  sanctifies,  and  advances  them  to  the  adop- 


THE   KINGDOM  OF   GOD   ON  THE   EARTH.  121 


tion  of  sons.  In  the  administration  of  this  king- 
dom, there  are  no  divine  attributes  that  are 
sustained  at  the  expense  of  others;  all  are 
equal,  and  have  equally  honored  claims,  and 
give  unequalled  beauty  and  lustre  to  the  v^'hole 
character  of  its  reigning  sovereign.  His  justice 
receives  new  honors  from  his  mercy ;  his  mercy 
receives  exaltation  it  never  could  have  received 
had  it  not  been  thus  exalted  by  his  justice. 
And  in  this  pre-eminently  consists  the  force  and 
excellence  of  his  claims  upon  the  hearts  of  his 
subjects.  His  very  law  is  clothed  with  new 
power  by  the  grace  that  bringeth  salvation,  be- 
cause it  here  has  demands  that  are  beyond  the 
demands  of  a  purely  legal  administration — de- 
mands of  grace — laws  of  love  and  mercy.  This 
is  the  great  principle  of  the  divine  kingdom, 
and  to  this  great  instrumentality  must  be  at- 
tributed its  successes  and  triumphs.  Nay,  this 
was  its  origin ;  it  never  had  existed  but  for 
the  condescension  of  the  "  Word  made  flesh," 
and  his  mediatorial  office  in  bringing  into  one 
the  justice  that  punishes  and  the  grace  that 
saves.  The  principles  by  which  this  kingdom 
is  administered,  therefore,  are  altogether  pecu- 
liar. They  have  no  sympathy  with  the  princi- 
ples of  earthly  princes.  It  is  a  kingdom  not 
of  this  world  ;  its  laws  evince  how  widely  dif- 
ferent it  is  from  all  earthly  kingdoms.     It  speaks 

6 


122  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


the  same  language  to  all  its  subjects,  and  it  is 
alike  adapted  to  them  all,  whatever  their  diflfer- 
ent  shades  of  character  or  outward  condition. 

Principles  which  thus  originate  with  the  heart 
of  the  Deity,  are  fitted  to  address  themselves  to 
the  hearts  of  men.  Hence  one  peculiarity  of  the 
laws  of  this  kingdom  is  the  fact  that  they  are  spir- 
itual, and  go  beyond  the  exterior  man.  They  aim 
at  the  heart.  They  require  more  than  an  outward 
respect  and  submission ;  their  object  is  to  secure 
a  heartfelt,  an  affectionate,  and  cheerful  obe- 
dience. They  enthrone  the  Prince  and  Saviour 
over  the  thoughts ;  they  make  him  the  God  of 
the  aifections,  the  Lord  of  the  will.  That  great 
law,  so  endless  in  its  ramifications,  "  Thou  shalt 
love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart,  and 
thy  neighbor  as  thyself,"  is  the  standard  of  char- 
acter, the  great  rule  of  action  in  the  divine  king- 
dom. It  is  one  which  never  changes,  and  is  in 
full  force  and  obligation  through  illimitable  ages. 
The  service  it  requires  is  a  reasonable  service, 
the  offspring  of  an  enlightened  faith,  and  such  as 
is  becoming  man  to  offer,  and  God  to  accept. 
No  right-hearted  man  ever  complained  of  the 
laws  of  the  divine  kingdom  as  being  too  strict, 
too  extended,  or  too  spiritual.  Rather  does  he 
acquiesce  in  them,  gives  them  his  warmest  at- 
tachment, and  though  they  may  do  violence  to 
flesh  and  blood,  and  urge  to  laborious  duties  and 


THE   KINGDOM  OF   GOD   ON  THE   EARTH.  123 


painful  sacrifices,  yet  is  it  no  part  of  his  charac- 
ter to  impugn  their  excellence. 

Another  peculiarity  of  this  kingdom  is  found 
in  the  character  of  its  subjects.  The  subjects  of 
this  kingdom  are  they  who  are  redeemed  by  the 
blood  of  its  Prince,  and  sanctified  by  his  Spirit; 
they  are  those  who  have  diligently  weighed  and 
pondered  his  precepts ;  who  have  habitual  ref- 
erence to  his  rule,  and  give  it  a  place  in  the 
ordinary  current  of  their  thoughts ;  who  are  im- 
pressed with  a  deep  sense  of  their  obligations, 
accompanied  with  a  sincere  resolution  of  implicit 
and  unreserved  obedience,  and  who  are  inspired 
with  a  love  to  his  law,  after  the  inner  man. 
They  possess  a  congeniality  of  mind  with  the 
spirit  and  tenor  of  God's  w^ord  ;  while  their  prac- 
tical compliance  with  it,  is  the  effect  of  the  love 
of  God  shed  abroad  in  their  hearts,  and  of  that 
inward,  vital  principle  of  faith  in  Jesus  Christ 
imparted  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  Scriptures 
describe  them  as  "  born  of  God."  This  work 
of  the  Spirit  is  the  seal  of  God  on  the  heart  of 
his  servants,  and  the  distinguishing  feature  in 
their  character.  Their  life  is  hid  with  Christ  in 
God.  This  union  to  him  is  the  source  of  their 
holiness,  the  secret  of  their  strength,  the  glory 
of  their  hopes.  This  character  possesses  all  the 
subjects  of  this  kingdom,  in  all  ages  of  the 
world,  and  throughout  all  its  extent  it  is  essen- 


124  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


tially  the  same  character  everywhere.  Wher- 
ever this  character  exists,  there  are  the  subjects 
of  this  kingdom.  They  are  patriarchs,  prophets, 
apostles,  martyrs,  confessors  ;  they  are  Christian 
men,  Christian  women.  Christian  children,  all 
over  the  earth.  Though  naturally  destitute  of 
holiness,  and  under  the  entire  dominion  of  a  de- 
praved heart,  their  internal  views  and  affections 
a*re  so  essentially  changed,  that  old  things  are 
passed  away,  and  all  things  are  become  new. 
They  have  a  spiritual  discerning  of  spiritual 
things,  love  what  they  formerly  did  not  love, 
and  hate  what  they  did  not  formerly  hate. 
They  are  those  who  place  God  on  the  throne, 
and  take  their  proper  place  at  his  footstool ;  and 
though  they  have  no  reason  for  self-exultation, 
and  cause  for  glorying  only  in  the  cross  of  Christ, 
yet  are  very  many  of  them  men  "  of  whom  the 
world  is  not  worthy,"  the  "  excellent  of  the 
earth,"  the  "  glory  of  the  nations."  They  form 
a  distinct  community,  amid  this  world's  vast  pop- 
ulation; often  "a  little  flock;"  but  they  are 
the  "  salt  of  the  earth,"  the  "  light  of  the 
world,"  a  "  peculiar  people,"  that  show  forth  the 
praises  of  Him  who  bought  them,  and  because  he 
bought  them,  brought  them  forth  from  the  king- 
dom of  Satan  into  the  kingdom  of  his  dear  Son. 
Another  peculiarity  of  this  kingdom,  therefore, 
consists  in  its  henevolent  and  hallowed  influence. 


THE   KINGDOM   OP   GOD   ON  THE   EARTH.  125 


Depraved  as  the  world  is,  its  great  security,  un- 
der God,  is  in  the  practical  influence  of  this 
divine  kingdom.  But  for  this,  there  would  be 
no  reverence  for  the  truth  of  God  among  men. 
The  subjects  of  this  kingdom  are  his  witnesses; 
their  hearts,  their  families,  and  their  altars,  are 
the  selected  depositaries  of  his  truth.  They 
themselves  are  living  epistles  of  it,  known  and 
read  of  all  men.  Exterminate  this  kingdom, 
and  the  nations  would  go  back  to  the  night  of 
paganism,  with  none  to  guide  their  feet  in  the 
way  of  peace;  this  earth  would  again  be  im- 
merged  in  darkness,  and  in  the  shadow  of  death. 
But  for  this  kingdom,  there  would  be  no  rever- 
ence for  God  himself,  and  none  for  his  law. 
Errors,  infidelity,  and  ungodliness,  would  become 
everywhere  so  rife  in  the  earth,  and  the  corrupt 
propensities  and  passions  of  men  would  so  throw 
off  their  wonted  restraints,  as  to  call  for  the  inter- 
posing judgments  of  the  insulted  majesty  of 
heaven.  The  times  would  be  calamitous ;  be- 
cause men  would  become  degenerate,  and  God 
would  be  angry.  Occupying  the  hills,  and  en- 
trenched by  the  strongholds  of  Zion,  this  kingdom 
forms  the  only  barrier  against  the  swelling,  men- 
acing tide  of  human  wretchedness ;  plants  firm 
and  lifts  high  its  standard  for  truth  and  right,  for 
religion  and  virtue,  for  order,  safety,  and  happi- 
ness.    It  stands  alone ;  and  has  the  courage  to 


126  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


do  SO,  in  view  of  opposition  however  formidable, 
and  sacrifices  however  great. 

Another  of  the  distinctions  of  this  kingdom 
is,  that  it  is  a  hapjnj  kingdom.  Those  who  are 
out  of  it  are  in  a  state  of  rebellion  against  their 
rightful  sovereign ;  they  are  contending  with 
God  who  is  mighty  to  save,  and  mighty  to  de- 
stroy ;  and  reason,  conscience,  and  all  the  prin- 
ciples of  that  government  which  its  mighty 
monarch  has  established,  forbid  that  they  should 
be  happy.  On  the  other  hand,  those  who  are 
within  it,  though  they  may  be  no  favorites  with 
the  world,  are  the  favorites  of  heaven.  What- 
ever else  they  forego,  they  do  not  forego  the 
favor  of  God,  nor  their  enjoyment  of  him, 
nor  any  of  the  sources  of  true  blessedness. 
Nothing  earthly  can  give  them  the  happiness 
they  seek.  The  kingdom  of  God  has  come  to 
them  as  suffering,  perishing  men,  with  the  abun- 
dance of  its  light,  the  plenitude  of  its  pardons, 
the  redundancy  of  its  grace.  The  malady  and 
the  misery  which  consisted  in  their  departure 
from  God,  are  healed  by  their  being  restored. 
They  have  now  peace  with  God,  with  whom  they 
were  once  at  war ;  peace  with  his  government, 
to  which  they  were  once  hostile  ;  peace  with 
themselves,  whose  bosoms  were  once  like  the 
troubled  sea  ;  peace  with  their  fellow  men,  once 
hateful  and  hating  one  another;  and  all  made 


THE   KINGDOM   OF    GOD   ON  THE   EARTH.  127 


sure  by  him  who  is  the  God  of  peace,  and 
through  him  who  is  the  Prince  of  peace.  Peace 
is  one  of  the  great  characteristics  of  this  king- 
dom. Prince  of  Peace  is  the  name  of  its  King. 
Under  his  reign  the  "  mountains  shall  bring 
peace  to  the  people,  and  the  little  hills  by 
riirhteousness."  He  "  maketh  wars  to  cease 
unto  the  ends  of  the  earth."  He  is  that  Sun  of 
righteousness  that  rises  with  "  healing  in  his 
beams."  He  shall  "  come  down  like  rain  upon 
the  mown  grass ;  as  showers  that  water  the 
earth ;  all  nations  shall  call  him  blessed ;  all 
people  shall  obtain  joij  and  gladness,  and  sorrow 
and  sighing  shall  flee  away." 

"  0  scenes  surpassing  fable,  and  yet  true ! 
Scenes  of  accomplished  bliss  !  wbicli,  who  can  see 
Though  but  in  distant  prospect,  and  not  feel 
His  soul  refreshed  with  foretaste  of  the  joy." 

The  only  remaining  characteristic  of  this  king- 
dom on  which  I  shall  dwell,  is  its  pepetuity.  It 
is  a  kingdom  which  "  shall  never  be  destroyed  ;" 
it  shall  "  not  be  left  to  other  people  ;"  it  shall 
"  stand  forever."  "  Of  his  kingdom,"  said  the 
angel  Gabriel  to  Mary, "  there  shall  be  no  end." 
The  "  gates  of  hell  shall  not  prevail  against  it." 
The  "  heavens  and  the  earth  shall  pass  away," 
but  the  words  of  its  Divine  Founder  "  shall  never 
pass  away."    Other  kingdoms  may  be  celebrated 


128  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


for  their  wealth  and  splendor,  for  the  fame  of 
their  emperors,  and  the  extent  of  their  con- 
quests ;  but  they  live  only  on  the  page  of  his- 
tory. Other  kingdoms  are  immortalized  in  song, 
because  they  may  have  been  the  birth-place  of 
freedom,  or  the  favored  habitations  of  genius ; 
yet  in  a  little  while  you  look  in  vain  for  one  re- 
maining trace  of  their  proud  glory.  Their 
princes  "  die  like  men;"  while  the  vast  empires 
over  which  they  reigned,  carry  within  them  the 
elements  of  their  own  destruction.  The  king- 
dom of  God  shall  outvie,  and  outlive  them  all ; 
it  carries  within  it  no  elements  of  destruction, 
but  rather  the  secret  of  its  own  perpetuity.  Its 
origin  and  the  method  by  which  it  was  acquired, 
the  principles  by  which  it  is  administered,  and 
the  immortality  and  universal  presence  of  its 
Founder,  are  the  sure  pledge  of  its  eternal  pro- 
gress. Its  great  Founder  himself  promises  to 
be  with  this  society  of  his  redeemed  to  the  end 
of  the  world.  The  kingdom  which  he  founded 
by  his  humiliation,  he  will  not  abandon  now 
that  he  is  exalted  to  the  right  hand  of  majesty 
on  high.  "  He  must  reign  until  all  enemies  are 
put  under  his  feet."  His  empire  has  been  ad- 
vancing for  eighteen  centuries  in  defiance  of  all 
the  powers  of  darkness ;  and  though  its  enemies 
may  be  many,  and  subtle,  and  powerful :  and 
though  the  work  to  be  accomplished  in  carrying 


THE   KINGDOM  OF   GOD   ON  THE   EARTH  129 


it  forward  is  great ;  yet  shall  it  advance  to  the 
utter  subversion  and  ruin  of  the  powers  com- 
bined against  it,  till  "  the  kingdoms  of  this  world 
become  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and  his 
Christ,  and  he  shall  reign  forever  and  ever." 

Such  is  the  kingdom  of  our  Father  who  is  in 
heaven.  Lift  up  your  eyes,  ye  who  are  the  chil- 
dren of  God,  and  survey  its  glories.  They  are 
not  the  wealth,  and  honors,  and  pleasures  of  this 
exterior  universe  which  it  brings  to  you,  but 
inw'ard  blessedness,  holier  joys,  an  imperishable 
inheritance.  It  "  is  not  meat  and  drink,  but 
righteousness  and  peace,  and  joy  in  the  Holy 
Ghost."  The  full  glories,  of  that  kingdom  are 
indeed,  "  yet  to  be  revealed."  You  have  the 
earnest  of  them  in  actual  possession.  "  The 
kingdom  of  God  is  within  you;"  and  though  the 
crown  and  the  sceptre  as  yet  await  you  in  eter- 
nity, the  day  is  not  far  distant,  wdien,  with  the 
spirits  of  just  men  made  perfect,  and  the  un- 
fallen  and  immortal  princes  of  this  kingdom,  you 
shall  take  your  place  with  cherubim  and  sera- 
phim, and  stand  in  the  presence  of  God.  Though 
still  in  your  minority,  and  even  the  infancy  of 
your  adoption,  yet  are  you  heirs  of  God,  and 
joint-heirs  with  Jesus  Christ.  Many  a  weary 
day  may  be  appointed  you  of  conflict  with  your 
enemies,  and  the  enemies  of  your  Prince;  but 
the  contest  w  ill  ere  long  be  over,  and  the  victory 

6* 


130  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


won.  Let,  then,  the  expectants  of  such  a  king- 
dom demean  themselves  in  a  way  befitting  their 
inheritance,  and  worthy  of  their  allegiance  to 
such  a  Prince. 

Those  there  are  who  are  still  in  a  state  of  re- 
bellion against  this  King  of  Zion.     Such  persons 
cannot  from  the  heart  say,  "  thy  kingdom  come." 
They  are  as  yet  under  the  dominion  of  another 
master,  and  belong  to  a  kingdom  that  must  be 
subverted  and  destroyed.  The  exalted  Messiah, 
in  terrible  majesty,  is  even  now  executing  judg- 
ment upon  his  enemies,  thereby  imparting  a  new 
impulse  to  his  own    glorious  reign.      Be  wise 
now,  therefore,  be  instructed,  ye  kings  and  peo- 
ple of  the  earth.     "  Serve  the  Lord  with  fear, 
and  rejoice  with  trembling.     Kiss  the  Son,  lest 
he  be  angry,  and  ye  perish  from  the  w^ay,  when 
his  w^rath  is  kindled   but  a  little."     An  awful 
state  is  that  of  an  unconverted  sinner.     He  is  a 
rebel  against  the  best  kingdom;  he  is  Satan's 
subject  and  servant.  Think  of  this,  ye  that  forget 
God ;  think  of  it,  w  bile  it  is  called  to-day.      If 
the  Prince  and  Saviour  has  no  throne  within  your 
heart ;  if  his  Spirit  does  not  influence,  nor  his 
laws  govern  you;  if  you  have  no  holiness  and 
no  peace  in  his  salvation  ;  you  are  still  under 
the  power  of  the  Prince  of  Darkness,  and  god 
of  this  world.    Yet  is  it  an  unspeakably  precious 
truth,  that  you  are  still  a  prisoner  of  hope  ;  that 


THE  KINGDOM  OP  GOD  ON  THE   EARTH.  131 


preparatory  to  the  kingdom  of  glory  hereafter,  is 
the  day  and  kingdom  of  grace  here.  Be  ye  sure 
of  this,  then,  that  the  kingdom  of  God  is  come 
nigh  unto  you.  Whosoever  will,  may  enter  in. 
The  gates  are  not  shut,  either  night  or  day. 
The  Spirit  and  the  Bride  say.  Come.  They 
open  wide  its  portals,  and  point  you  to  its  treas- 
ures and  its  throne.  Come,  enter  in.  Every 
subject  is  a  king,  in  that  kingdom  ;  every  head 
wears  a  crown  of  righteousness ;  in  every  heart 
there  is  fulness  of  joy. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


THE  MEANS  OF  EXTENDING  GOD'S  KINGDOM. 


"dblli|  lingtom  €miJ' 

The  kingdom  of  God,  as  we  have  exhibited 
its  nature  and  characteristics  in  the  previous 
chapter,  is  his  spiritual  reign  over  the  minds  of 
men.  Occupying,  as  it  did,  the  thoughts  and 
counsels  of  the  Eternal  Mind,  before  the  heavens 
were  stretched  out,  or  the  foundations  of  the 
earth  were  laid,  it  still  forms  his  great  master 
purpose.  It  is  destined  to  advance  ;  but  the  in- 
quiry is  one  of  interest.  How  and  by  what 
means  is  its  advancement  to  be  secured  ? 

Its  conquests  are  not  physical,  nor  political, 
nor  military  conquests;  but  spiritual  victories, 
and  are  achieved  by  a  spiritual  armor.  There 
are  preparatory  measures  by  which  the  minds  of 
men  are  rendered  accessible  to  its  influences. 
There  is  an  intimate  connection  between  the 
system  of  providence  and  the  method  of  grace. 
One  of  the  selected  and  ordained  means  of  ad- 


THE  MEANS  OF  EXTENDING  GOD'S  KINGDOM.        133 


vancing  the  kingdom  of  God,  ever  has  been  the 
revolutions  and  conduct  of  his  own  mighty  prov- 
idence. It  is  the  purpose  of  infinite  love  that 
this  kingdom  shall  ultimately  absorb  every  other 
interest,  and  in  accomplishing  this  purpose,  he 
must  necessarily  extend  his  government  beyond 
those  established  laws  of  nature  which  consti- 
tute a  general  providence.  He  must  exercise  a 
particular  providence  over  all  human  affairs ; 
without  this  prerogative,  his  mediatorial  office 
would  be  incomplete.  If  the  nations  are  given 
to  him  for  an  inheritance,  the  arrangements  of 
his  providence  must  be  such  as  to  give  his  truth 
access  to  their  minds ;  and  when  they  have  be- 
come identified  watli  his  kingdom,  these  arrange- 
ments must  be  such  as  to  render  him  their  effec- 
tual guardian. 

His  providence,  in  ways  unseen,  as  well  as 
seen,  prepares  the  way  for  his  gospel,  and  is  the 
appointed  precursor  to  herald  its  approach.  The 
history  of  the  past,  as  well  as  events  that  are  tak- 
ing place  under  our  own  observation,  abundantly 
show  how  the  many  overturnings  in  the  affairs 
of  men,  subserve  the  purposes  of  his  mediatorial 
reign.  The  enterprises  of  those  thus  employed 
as  God's  instruments,  may  be  unhallowed  enter- 
prises ;  they  may  originate  wdth  pride,  and  be 
prompted  by  love  of  power  ;  they  may  aim  solely 
at  wealth,  conquest,  or  revenge ;  but  though  "  they 


134  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


mean  it  unto  evil,  God  means  it  unto  good." 
Even  the  sword  of  the  conqueror  receives  its 
commission  from  him  who  purposes  to  follow  it 
with  the  sword  of  his  Spirit.  Walls  that  have 
rendered  millions  impervious  to  his  truth,  have 
been  battered  down  by  men  whom  he  has  raised 
up,  and  qualified,  and  directed,  and  prospered 
for  his  own  ends.  His  providence  has  many  a 
time  riveted  chains  upon  the  necks  of  his  ene- 
mies, that  his  people  might  go  free ;  and  on  the 
other  hand  has  knocked  oif  those  chains,  that 
his  people  may  enjoy  the  common  liberty  of  his 
enemies.  When  science  has  been  pursuing  her 
researches ;  wdien  the  arts  have  been  follow- 
ing up  their  improvements  on  the  sea  and  on 
the  land,  and  amid  all  the  elements  of  nature ; 
when  men  of  wealth  and  men  of  toil  have  been 
pushing  their  enterprises  through  the  rocky  and 
mountainous  wilderness,  and  have  joined  sea  to 
sea  and  shore  to  shore  ;  an  unseen,  but  almighty 
hand  has  been  guiding  their  bold  and  hazardous 
undertakings,  so  that  "  his  way  may  be  known, 
and  his  saving  health  among  all  nations." 

As  it  has  been,  so  it  will  be.  Many  a  valley 
is  to  be  exalted,  and  many  a  mountain  laid  low ; 
many  a  crooked  way  is  to  be  made  straight,  and 
many  a  stream  to  be  dried  up,  that  the  way  for 
the  Redeemer's  conquests  may  be  prepared,  and 
the  ransomed  of  the  Lord  may  pass  over.     Em- 


THE  MEANS  OF  EXTENDING  GOD'S  KINGDOM.        135 


pire  after  empire  is  yet  to  be  overturned;  the 
lofty  are  to  be  brought  low,  and  the  lowly  are 
to  be  lifted  up ;  great  and  mighty  movements 
are  to  be  looked  for  in  the  world,  and  periods 
of  disastrous  revolution  to  the  powers  of  dark- 
ness, that  the  God  of  Israel  may  make  to  him- 
self a  name,  and  the  ark  of  his  strength  be  ex- 
alted in  the  earth.  The  providence  of  God  is 
the  expositor,  as  well  as  the  precursor  and  the 
executor  of  his  purposes  of  mercy.  The  origin  and 
progress,  the  decline  and  fall  of  nations  and 
governments,  are  ail  under  his  control,  who 
"  worketh  all  things  after  the  counsel  of  his  own 
will."  His  councils  record  their  history;  in  his 
calendar  are  marked  the  hours  of  their  advance- 
ment and  their  pride ;  he  opens  the  seals  of  the 
book,  where  the  time  is  noted  when  he  shall 
overturn  them,  in  order  to  give  place  to  that 
kingdom  for  which  all  other  things  were  made. 
"  He  shall  remove  the  diadem,  and  take  off  the 
crown;  exalt  him  that  is  low,  and  abase  him 
that  is  high ;  he  shall  overturn,  overturn,  and 
overturn,  and  it  shall  be  no  more  until  He  come 
whose  right  it  is,  and  he  will  give  it  him." 

In  addition  to  these  preparatory  arrangements, 
there  are  moral  instrumentalities  by  which  this 
kingdom  is  to  be  advanced.  In  those  move- 
ments of  Divine  Providence  that  are  directed 
and  overruled  to  the  coming  of  Christ's  kingdom. 


136  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


men,  so  far  as  regards  the  ends  God  is  aiming  at, 
are,  for  the  most  part,  the  passiv  e,  and  even  the 
unconscious  instruments.  Yet  has  man  an  active 
part  to  perform,  in  advancing  the  interests  of  this 
kingdom.  He  is  a  subaltern  in  this  spiritual  v^ar- 
fare;  he  is  to  occupy  the  post  assigned  him;  he 
has  the  means  both  of  aggression  and  defence. 
They  are  not  unhallowed  principles  which  he 
is  warranted  to  make  use  of,  nor  are  they  sus- 
tained by  unhallowed  motives.  They  are  not 
the  power  of  the  secular  arm,  enforcing  the 
edicts  of  the  church.  They  are  not  fines  and 
forfeitures,  fire  and  sword,  racks  and  chains, 
banishment  and  the  dungeon.  Nor  are  they  en- 
tangling alliances  between  the  church  and  the 
state,  the  civil  establishments  of  religion,  the 
wisely-invented  checks  and  balances  of  the  wily 
politician.  Nor  do  they  partake  of  the  nature  of 
those  human  devices  in  the  worship  of  God, 
which  have  been  so  abundantly  superadded  to 
the  "  simplicity  that  is  in  Christ."  They  are 
not  the  intercession  of  departed  saints,  nor  the 
flames  of  purgatory,  nor  the  merit  of  penitence, 
nor  works  of  supererogation,  nor  the  celibacy  of 
the  clergy,  nor  the  scarlet  robes  of  the  priesthood, 
nor  any  of  the  endless  superstitions  whereby  the 
Man  of  Sin  has  deceived  the  nations.  Nor  are 
they  the  subtilties  of  philosophy,  the  speculations 
of  reason,  the  pride  and  ostentation  of  unsancti- 


THE  MEANS  OP  EXTENDING  GOD'S  KINGDOM.        137 


fied  learning  and  eloquence.  Nor  are  they  the 
disingenuousness  and  crooked  policy  of  a  faith- 
less ministry,  that  would  please  men.  The 
means  are  few  and  simple,  efficacious,  and  of 
divine  appointment.  They  are  the  truth  and 
love  of  the  Gospel ;  the  light,  the  power,  of 
truth;  the  ardor,  the  fire  of  love. 

They  are  the  word  of  the  living  God,  published 
to  all  nations,  and  sustained  hy  the  institutions,  ex- 
ample, and  influence  of  his  church.  These  are,  in- 
deed, means  which  seem  inadequate  to  the  end ; 
because  they  are  so  simple,  and  so  few.  "  The 
kingdom  of  God  cometh  not  with  observation." 
The  stone  spoken  of  by  the  Prophet  Daniel, 
which  was  emblematical  of  this  kingdom,  was 
"  cut  out  of  the  mountain  without  hands."  Like 
the  temple  at  Jerusalem,  "  neither  hammer  nor 
axe,  nor  any  tool  of  iron,  is  heard  in  the  house 
while  it  is  building."  They  are  means  which 
address  themselves  to  the  intellectual  and  moral 
nature  of  man ;  which  make  their  appeal  to  his 
reason,  his  conscience,  and  his  heart;  which 
speak  to  the  soul,  on  the  authority  of  their  Au- 
thor; which  are  silent  in  their  influence,  as  the 
dew  of  heaven ;  balmy  as  the  droppings  of 
mercy  from  the  wings  of  the  angel  flying 
through  the  midst  of  heaven ;  diffusive  and  life- 
giving  as  is  the  Sun  of  Righteousness,  when  he 
rises  with  healing  in  his  beams. 


138  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


The  simple  preaching  of  Christ  and  him  cru- 
cified, occupies  the  first  place  among  the  great  in- 
strumentalities by  which  the  kingdom  of  dark- 
ness is  to  be  overcome,  and  men  are  to  be 
brought  into  the  kingdom  of  God. 

"  The  pulpit 
Must  stand  acknowledged,  while  the  world  shall  stand. 
The  most  important  and  effectual  guard, 
Support,  and  ornament  of  virtues  cause." 

"  The  words  that  I  speak  unto  you,"  saith  the 
Saviour,  "  they  are  spirit  and  they  are  life." 
Whatever  that  word  contains — whatever  of  God 
in  his  glory  and  his  humiliation ;  whatever  of 
man,  fallen  and  redeemed ;  whatever  of  the  pity 
of  heaven  for  the  apostasy  of  earth  ;  whatever  of 
glad  tidings  of  great  joy  there  is  in  his  obedience 
unto  death,  and  in  a  gratuitous  justification  by 
faith  in  his  blood — intelligently,  faithfully,  and 
affectionately  exhibited,  and  urged  upon  the  con- 
science by  all  the  sanctions  of  the  eternal  world 
— this  is  the  instrumentality  by  which  the  won- 
derful changes  spoken  of  in  the  Scriptures  are  yet 
to  be  effected  in  the  world,  and  the  kingdom  of 
God  to  gain  its  decisive  victories.  Heavenly 
truth  and  heavenly  love  are  to  accomplish  these 
conquests; — heavenly  truth,  because  true  piety 
is  everywhere  conformity  to  the  truth  of  God, 
nor  can  it  exist  save  where  that  truth  is  per- 
ceived and  loved — heavenly  love,  because  there 


THE  MEANS  OF  EXTENDING  GOD'S  KINGDOM.        139 


is  no  other  way  of  carrying  a  hostile  world, 
than  by  drawing  it  with  "  cords  of  love,"  those 
"  bands  of  a  man."  In  pourtraying  the  suc- 
cesses of  his  empire,  the  Spirit  of  God  addresses 
the  King  of  Zion  in  the  following  language  : — 
"  Gird  thy  sword  upon  thy  thigh,  O  most  mighty, 
with  thy  glory  and  thy  majesty.  And  in  thy  maj- 
esty ride  prosperously  because  of  truth,  meek- 
ness, and  righteousness ;  and  thy  right  hand 
shall  teach  thee  terrible  things.  Thine  arrows 
are  sharp  in  the  hearts  of  the  king's  enemies, 
whereby  the  people  fall  under  thee."  Mark 
the  means  of  his  conquests — the  weapons  by 
which  his  foes  become  a  conquered,  yet  a  will- 
ing people,  and  while  they  submit  to  his  power, 
cheerfully  and  gladly  bow  at  his  footstool! 
They  are  truth,  meekness,  righteousness.  This 
is  the  "  rod  of  his  strength"  which  he  sends  out 
of  Zion  ;  these  the  arrows  which  perforate  and 
transform  the  heart. 

Another  of  the  means  by  which  this  kingdom 
is  advanced,  is  the  religious  education  of  the 
young.  There  is  no  greater  evidence  of  the 
importance  to  be  attached  to  this  means  of  ad- 
vancing the  reign  of  God  in  the  hearts  of  men 
than  the  fact,  that  in  the  dispensations,  both 
of  his  natural  and  moral  government,  God  has 
so  closely  connected  the  character  and  destiny 
of  the  child  with  that  of  the  parent.     The  cov- 


140  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


enant  with  the  first  father  of  our  race  in  Para- 
dise, the  covenant  with  Noah  as  the  father  of 
the  new  world,  the  covenant  with  Abraham  as 
the  head  of  the  Hebrew  nation  and  the  father 
of  all  them  that  believe,  confirmed  by  its  im- 
pressive seal,  furnish  affecting  proofs  of  the 
reality  and  importance  of  this  great  principle, 
pervading  all  the  varieties  of  administration  in 
the  kingdom  of  grace. 

The  Scriptures  explicitly  teach  us  that  the 
great  design  of  heavenly  wisdom  in  the  institu- 
tion of  the  domestic  relations,  and  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  social  state,  protected  as  they  are  by 
so  many  sanctions  of  the  most  solemn  kind,  is 
the  moral  and  religious  culture  of  the  rising 
race.  Alluding  to  the  origin  of  the  human  fam- 
ily from  one  pair,  the  prophet  demands,  "  Did 
he  not  make  one  ?  And  wherefore  one  !  That 
he  might  seek  a  godlij  seed.''  There  is  nothing 
in  which  the  interests  of  piety  have  a  deeper 
stake,  than  these  hallowed  relations.  The  whole 
face  and  character  of  human  society,  and  the 
condition  of  the  church,  receive  their  impres- 
sion from  the  character  of  the  rising  generation. 
The  religious  training  of  the  infantile  and  youth- 
ful mind,  though  not  the  exclusive,  constitutes 
the  selected  channel  in  which  the  grace  of  God 
is  wont  to  flow.  The  neglect  or  careless  per- 
formance of  this  duty  is  an  unfailing  token  (o* 


THE  MEANS  OP  EXTENDING  GOD'S  KINGDOM.        141 


evil.  Give  the  adversary  the  education  of  the 
rising  generation,  and  the  world  will  be  overrun 
with  "  a  seed  of  evil  doers."  There  is  no  time 
for  sowing  the  seeds  of  knowledge  and  grace 
like  the  spring-time  of  human  life.  If  the  child 
is  neglected,  unless  some  unpromised  and  un- 
looked-for interposition  sever  the  effect  from  the 
cause,  the  man  is  lost.  It  is  comparatively  easy 
to  purify  the  fountain;  but  when  the  streams 
become  diffused  and  extended,  they  are  beyond 
your  reach. 

Confirmed  obduracy  in  sin  belongs  not  to  the 
earlier  periods  of  life ;  a  seared  conscience  is 
seldom,  if  ever  found  in  the  bosom  of  the 
young.  A  little  child  is  never  the  creature  of 
sensuality ;  nor  do  care  and  perplexity  so  em- 
barrass and  enchain  the  youthful  mind  as  to 
choke  the  word.  Faith,  hope  and  prayer  hover, 
with  the  deepest  interest  and  highest  promise, 
not  over  the  aged,  but  the  young.  The  Holy 
Spirit,  the  gentle  Dove  of  Heaven,  forsakes  the 
rugged  bosom  which  has  long  been  the  seat  of 
stormy  passions,  to  dwell  in  the  more  peaceful, 
and  tranquil  heart  of  the  devout  child. 

In  those  portions  of  the  earth,  and  in  those 
periods  of  the  world,  in  which  the  kingdom  of 
God  has  been  most,  and  most  rapidly  extended, 
it  began  its  advances  in  the  hearts  of  the  young. 
The  great  mass  of  those  whose  piety  has  been 


142  THE  MERCY   SEAT, 


eminent  in  the  world,  as  well  as  the  great  mass 
of  those  who  have  been  most  eminent  as  preach- 
ers of  the  gospel,  together  with  those  whom 
God  has  honored  as  the  reformers  of  a  corrupt 
and  degenerate  age,  and  the  successful  missiona- 
ries of  the  cross  among  the  heathen,  have  sprung 
from  a  godly  ancestry,  and  have  been  "trained 
up  in  the  way  in  which  they  should  go."  There 
is  no  more  cheering  indication  of  the  advance- 
ment of  God's  kingdom  in  the  earth,  than  when 
youthful  converts  are  multiplied  as  the  drops  of 
the  dew.  It  is  a  delightful  prospect,  as  the 
older,  and  more  withered  trees,  of  righteousness 
die  away,  to  behold  the  younger  and  more  vig- 
orous plants  shoot  up  and  occupy  their  places. 
Blessed  is  that  youthful  generation  by  whom 
the  kingdom  of  God  is  thus  advanced ;  and 
blessed  also  is  that  risen  generation  which  is 
preparing  a  righteous  seed  to  perform  this 
blessed  work  ! 

We  do  not  depreciate  other  agencies  in  this 
great  work.  We  honor  the  press  and  the  in- 
stitutions of  learning  ;  but  they  owe  their  eleva- 
ting and  purifying  influence  to  the  Bible,  the 
ministry  and  the  church  of  God.  They  have  ac- 
complished little  else  than  to  mislead  and  corrupt, 
where  they  are  not  under  a  Christian  influence. 
But  while  these  are  means  of  God's  appoint- 
ment, and  correspond  with  the  nature  of  that 


THE  MEANS  OF  EXTENDING  GOD'S  KINGDOM.        143 


kingdom  which  they  are  designed  to  promote ;  and 
while  they  possess  an  evident  and  strong  adapta- 
tion to  secure  its  advancement ;  there  is  another 
power  by  which  its  advancement  is  secured  :  I 
mean  the  effectual  working  of  the  Hohj  Spirit. 
There  is  no  natural  tendency  in  the  individual 
mind,  nor  in  larger  associations  of  minds,  to 
yield  to  the  influences  of  God's  truth,  however 
clearly  and  impressively  exhibited.  His  truth 
furnishes  but  the  material,  the  instrument,  the 
medium  by  which  a  superadded  and  higher 
power  operates  on  the  understanding  and  heart. 
In  relation  to  all  the  means  that  are  adopted  for 
the  extension  of  the  Redeemer's  kingdom,  it 
may  never  be  forgotten,  that  it  is  "  not  by  might, 
nor  by  power,  but  by  the  Spirit  of  God."  Truth 
enlightens  the  understanding,  and  thus  presents 
before  the  mind  the  objects  of  gracious  affection; 
it  convinces  the  conscience,  and  thus  awakens 
fear  and  apprehension  ;  it  imparts  a  sense  of 
obligation,  and  thus  leaves  men  without  excuse 
in  their  alienation  from  God ;  it  fixes  powerful 
associations  and  presents  the  strongest  induce- 
ments to  piety  in  the  minds  of  men,  who  see  it 
as  it  is,  and  thus  supplies  the  motives  to  holiness : 
but  more  than  this,  it  cannot  perform.  "  Neither 
is  he  that  planteth  anything,  neither  he  that 
watereth,  but  God  that  giveth  the  increase." 
Our  confidence  in  the  advancement  of  the  Re- 


144  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


deemer's  kingdom,  is  in  the  promise,  "  The 
Comforter,  the  Holy  Ghost,  shall  abide  with 
you  forever."  He  alone  gives  the  truth  its 
saving  efficacy.  "  We  have  this  treavsure  in 
earthen  vessels,  that  the  excellency  of  the  power 
may  be  all  of  God  and  not  of  us." 

Much  is  indeed  gained  by  those  overturnings 
of  divine  providence  by  which  the  way  is  pre- 
pared for  the  gospel  to  have  access  to  the  minds 
of  men ;  more  is  accomplished  by  the  actual 
diffusion  of  the  Scriptures  in  every  land,  and 
the  dispersion  of  an  instructive  and  faithful 
ministry,  everywhere  dispensing  to  listening 
millions  the  words  of  eternal  life.  Still  more 
is  effected  by  the  faithful  and  devout  efforts  of 
the  church  for  the  rising  generation.  Effects 
like  these  present  scenes  of  great  beauty  and 
hope ;  yet  are  they  in  reality  scenes  of  great 
barrenness  and  desolation,  until  the  hearts  of 
men  are  opened  by  the  Spirit  of  God  to  receive 
the  truth  in  the  love  of  it.  "  Upon  the  land  of 
my  people  shall  come  up  thorns  and  briers ; 
yea,  upon  all  the  houses  of  joy  in  the  joyous 
city:  because  the  palaces  shall  be  forsaken; 
the  multitude  of  the  city  shall  be  left ;  the 
forts  and  towers  shall  be  for  dens  forever,  a  joy 
of  wild  asses,  a  pasture  of  flocks ;  until  the 
Spirit  be  poured  upon  us  from  on  high,  and  the 
wilderness  be  a  fruitful  field,  and  the  fruitful 


THE  MEANS  OF  EXTENDING  GOD'S  KINGDOM.        145 


field  be  counted  for  a  forest."  No  such  effect- 
ive and  beneficial  changes  will  take  place  in 
the  moral  condition  of  men,  as  shall  give  success 
to  the  kingdom  of  God,  until  this  sacred  influ- 
ence descends,  now  in  drops,  now  in  more  copi- 
ous showers,  giving  fertility  and  gladness.  Then 
it  is  that  the  great  Husbandman  "  plants  in  the 
wilderness  the  cedar  tree,  the  shittah  tree,  and 
the  myrtle,  and  the  oil  tree  ;"  and  sets  in  the 
desert  "  the  fir  tree,  and  the  pine,  and  the  box 
tree  together ;  that  they  may  see,  and  know,  and 
consider,  and  understand  together,  that  the 
hand  of  the  Lord  hath  done  this,  and  the  Holy 
One  of  Israel  hath  created  it." 

A  glorious  day  will  that  be,  when  after  ages 
of  darkness  and  long  periods  of  spiritual  desola- 
tion, the  cheering  words  shall  be  again  heard 
from  heaven,  "  And  I  will  no  more  hide  my  face 
from  them;  for  I  have  poured  out  my  Spirit 
upon  the  house  of  Israel,  saith  the  Lord  God." 
The  kingdom  of  Satan,  that  subtle  and  malig- 
nant Spirit  who  dwells  in  the  children  of  dis- 
obedience, and  who  has  with  so  much  success 
organized  a  regular  system  of  opposition  to  the 
kingdom  of  God,  shall  be  brought  within  nar- 
rower, and  still  more  narrow  limits,  until  it  is 
ultimately  subverted  and  overthrown.  Apostate 
men  shall  be  withdrawn  in  great  numbers  from 
their  allegiance  to  his  empire,  and  introduced 


146  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


into  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  kept  in  it,  and 
the  kingdom  of  glory  shall  be  hastened.  We 
may  not  look  for  the  successes  of  the  gospel 
and  the  triumphs  of  truth,  without  a  divine 
agency.  They  are  but  instruments  which  we 
make  use  of,  and  never  effectual  save  when 
wielded  by  an  omnipotent  arm.  It  were  but  a 
state  of  complete  hopelessness  to  call  upon  men 
to  forsake  their  sins,  and  to  wait  for  the  Son  of 
God  from  heaven,  without  confidence  in  some- 
thing: beside  an  arm  of  flesh. 

I  remark  then  once  more,  there  is  an  appro- 
priate place  for  another  powerful  agency  in  ad- 
vancing the  kingdom  of  God :  I  mean  the  poioer 
of  prayer.  Prayer  in  the  closet,  prayer  in  the 
domestic  circle,  prayer  in  the  sanctuary,  concert 
in  prayer,  everywhere,  at  all  times,  and  with 
one  accord,  is  the  great  means  of  securing  the 
needed  influences  of  the  Spirit,  and  of  realizing 
the  hopes  of  the  church  for  his  coming  and 
kingdom  who  is  her  adorable  Head.  "  Prayer 
touches  the  only  spring  that  can  possibly  ensure 
success.  By  speaking,  w^e  move  man ;  by 
prayer  we  move  God.  It  is  through  the  me- 
dium of  prayer  that  the  littleness  and  mean- 
ness of  man  prevail  with  omnipotence.  -The 
prayer  of  faith  is  the  only  power  in  the  universe 
to  which  the  great  Jehovah  yields ;  he  looks 
upon  every  other  power  as  more  or  less  opposed 


THE  MEANS  OF  EXTENDING  GOD'S  KINGDOM.        147 


to  him;  but  he  looks  upon  this  as  a  confession 
of  man's  dependence,  as  an  appropriate  homage 
to  his  greatness,  as  an  attraction  which  brings 
down  his  divine  agency  to  the  eartli."  The 
voice  of  prayer  is  a  voice  wiiich  God  hears ;  it 
suggests  reasons  which  he  weighs ;  it  is  the  ex- 
pression of  affections  which  he  delights  in;  it 
is  the  utterance  of  desires  w  hich  he  honors,  and 
is  honored  in  gratifying.  "If  ye,  being  evil, 
know  how  to  give  good  gifts  to  your  children, 
how^  much  more  shall  your  Father  which  is  in 
heaven  give  his  Holy  Spirit  to  them  that  ask 
him." 

Men  may  prosper  without  other  gifts,  but  they 
cannot  prosper  without  God's  Holy  Spirit.  Other 
gifts  are  for  the  body;  this  is  for  the  soul.  Other 
gifts  are  for  time  ;  this  is  for  eternity.  Earthly 
parents  can  bestow  other  gifts  ;  this  they  cannot 
bestow.  This  is  a  gift  purchased  at  a  dear  rate  ; 
but  our  heavenly  Parent  gives  it  freely,  and  only 
for  the  asking.  Everything  else  may  fail,  but 
prayer  has  irresistible  power,  and  in  the  hour 
of  the  direst  extremity.  Prayer  pleads  in  his 
name,  and  for  his  sake  and  kingdom  who  bowed 
his  heavens  to  dwell  with  and  suffer  for  men, 
and  whom  eternally  to  honor  is  the  peculiar 
office  of  the  Spirit  of  all  grace.  Jesus  himself 
dictated  the  request  "  Thy  kingdom  come !" 
because  that  kingdom,  under  his  own  conde- 


148  THE  MERCY   SEAT, 


scending  and  gracious  arrangement,  needs  the 
impulse  of  prayer.  It  solicits  it  now,  from  the 
reader,  from  the  writer,  from  "  men  every- 
where." It  is  now  in  the  midst  of  its  conflicts, 
and  in  many  portions  of  the  earth  under  the 
cloud.  Its  priests,  its  ministers  are  often  clothed 
in  sackcloth ;  its  prophets  prophesy  in  heaviness 
upon  valleys  of  the  slain ;  its  subjects  weep  be- 
cause the  enemy  hath  spread  out  his  hand  over 
her  pleasant  things.  And  not  until  more  are 
found  who  cease  not  day  nor  night  to  bow  their 
knees  before  the  great  Hearer  of  prayer,  that 
the  "  Holy  Ghost  may  be  sent  down  from 
heaven,"  will  this  dejection  pass  away,  Zion 
become  clothed  with  garments  of  beauty  and 
salvation,  and  her  hopes  and  expectations  be 
measured  no  longer  by  her  own  resources,  but 
his  who  is  "  wonderful  in  working."  The  higher 
we  ascend  the  mount  of  prayer,  the  more  ex- 
tended and  the  brighter  is  the  prospect.  A  bright 
streak  skirts  the  horizon,  and  after  long  nights 
of  ignorance  and  sin,  the  day  dawns,  not  upon 
a  desert  and  barren  world,  but  one  already 
watered  with  the  dews  of  heaven,  and  to  be 
yet  more  refreshed  with  copious  showers.  The 
view  brightens  as  we  still  ascend.  It  is  no 
longer  a  little  cloud  that  we  see,  betokening 
an  abundance  of  rain,  but  the  descending  show- 


THE  MEANS  OP  EXTENDING  GOD'S  KINGDOM.        14d 


ers,  the  vales  beneath  green  as  the  garden  of 
the  Lord. 

**  Rivers  of  gladness  water  all  the  earth, 
And  clothe  all  climes  with  beauty." 

"  Thy  kingdom  come !"  This  is  a  great  re- 
quest, not  merely  on  account  of  the  objects  it 
has  in  view,  but  the  practical  duties  it  involves. 
The  spirit  of  prayer  is  the  spirit  of  correspond- 
ing exertion  ;  the  noblest,  most  self-denying, 
and  successful  efforts  for  the  coming  of  God's 
kingdom  originate  at  the  mercy  seat,  and  find 
their  strongest  and  most  unwearied  impulse  in 
prayer.  The  suppliant  who  goes  to  the  throne 
with  this  request  on  his  lips,  if  he  is  true- 
hearted,  possesses  a  strong  attachment  to  the 
kingdom  which  the  God  of  heaven  has  set  up  in 
our  world,  and  a  willingness  on  his  part  to  do 
all  in  his  power  to  promote  it  both  in  his  own 
heart  and  in  the  hearts  of  his  fellow-men. 
There  is  nothing  for  which  such  a  man  feels  so 
much  concern  as  for  the  honor  of  his  redeeming 
God  and  king ;  nothing  he  so  fervently  desires 
as  that  his  character  should  be  loved  and  vene- 
rated, his  laws  obeyed,  and  his  claims  enthroned 
in  the  hearts  of  those  who  know  not  God.  "If 
I  forget  thee,  O  Jerusalem,  let  my  right  hand 
forget  her  cunning;  if  I  do  not  remember  thee, 
let  my  tongue  cleave  to  the  roof  of  my  mouth  ; 


150  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


if  I  prefer  not  Jerusalem  above  my  chief  joy !" 
He  who  possesses  this  spirit,  complains  not  if 
God  makes  demands  upon  his  thoughts,  his  time, 
efforts,  and  property,  to  extend  this  kingdom  in 
the  world ;  it  is  his  privilege  and  honor  to  conse- 
crate them.  He  will  not  offer  to  God  that  which 
costs  him  nothing.  He  is  habitually  jealous  of 
himself  and  watchful  of  his  own  heart  and  life, 
lest  he  should  be  betrayed  into  the  inconsistency 
of  praying  for  the  advancement  of  that  kingdom, 
for  the  prosperity  of  which  he  does  nothing,  and 
in  w  hich  he  himself  has  no  part. 

If  the  reader  sympathizes  with  the  writer  of 
these  pages,  he  has  often  felt  rebuked  and  con- 
demned by  his  ofvu  prayers.  The  achievements 
of  prayer  ought  to  be  more  in  keeping  with  its 
subject  and  its  matter.  They  will  be  so,  when 
w^e  possess  its  true  spirit.  Would  that  this  en- 
couraging fact  were  set  in  its  true  light,  and 
were  more  deeply  felt  by  the  Christian  world  ! 
As  certainly  as  effects  follow  their  causes,  in 
any  of  the  visible  operations  of  nature,  "  the  ef- 
fectual, fervent  prayer  of  a  righteous  man  avail- 
eth  much."  It  is  but  for  the  spirit  of  the  closet 
and  the  sanctuary  to  be  more  deeply  felt,  and 
uniformly  acted  out  in  the  life,  and  the  kingdom 
of  God  will  come  with  power. 

Far  too  weak  and  limited  are  our  conceptions 
of  the  work  to  be  done,  and  the  agencies  to  be 


THE  MEANS  OF  EXTENDING  GOD'S  KINGDOM.        151 


employed,  in  extending  the  kingdom  of  God 
over  this  lost  world.  Yet  is  there  one  thought 
I  desire  to  impress  on  the  mind  of  the  reader, 
before  I  close  the  present  chapter.  It  is  the  re- 
lation which  those  who  already  belong  to  this  king- 
dom hear  to  those  who  are  out  of  it.  The  wicked 
are  to  be  converted  to  God  through  the  instru- 
mentality of  the  righteous.  Salvation  was 
originally  "  of  the  Jews,"  because  they  were  the 
only  visible  people  of  God.  The  rod  of  God's 
strength  goes  "  forth  out  of  Zion."  So  far  as 
human  instrumentality  is  concerned,  the  re- 
sources of  the  vvorld  are  foutid  in  the  church  of 
God.  Her  Scriptures  and  her  ministry,  her  Sab- 
baths and  her  ordinances,  her  religious  training 
of  the  young,  and  her  prayers,  her  bounty,  her 
example,  and  her  self-denying  efforts  and  cour- 
age, are  the  hope  of  benighted  and  lost  men. 
The  church  of  God  constitutes  a  great  "  Chris- 
tian corporation,"  for  extending  the  boundaries, 
and  beautifying  the  character  of  God's  kingdom 
among  men.  It  is  not  for  her  own  sake  alone, 
that  she  was  thus  incorporated,  but  for  the  sake 
of  others,  and  that  this  divinely  incorporated 
body  of  the  professed  children  of  the  kingdom 
might  take  a  deep  and  effective  interest  in  the 
conversion  of  the  world.  She  holds  her  high 
immunities  and  hopes  in  trust  for  a  world  that 
lieth   in    wickedness.     The    conscience  of  the 


152  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


church  has  been  slow  in  feeling  this  obligation ; 
where  it  is  felt  and  acknowledged,  it  has  not  al- 
ways been  responded  to  by  a  willing  heart  and 
consecrated  effort.  Did  the  church  of  God  now 
on  the  earth  possess  the  self-sacrificing  spirit  of 
the  churches  established  in  the  Apostolic  age, 
we  might  say  with  Apostles,  "  Now  thanks  be 
to  God,  \^'hich  always  causeth  us  to  triumph  in 
Christ,  and  maketh  manifest  the  savor  of  his 
knowledge  by  us,  in  every  place."  There  has 
been  a  declension  in  the  missionary  spirit,  ever 
since  the  memorable  age  of  which  we  are  speak- 
ing. Persecution  thecked  it,  and  then  contro- 
versy, and  then  the  corruption  of  prosperity  and 
power,  and  then  a  chivalrous  enthusiasm,  and 
then  severer  persecutions,  and  then  again  the 
spirit  of  controversy;  till  the  world  extended 
its  ascendency,  and  the  church  sank  in  almost 
universal  apathy  and  indifference.  The  lighting 
up  of  the  past  fifty  years  has  been  a  delightful, 
yet  a  faint  reflection  of  that  Apostolic  spirit 
which  poured  its  light  on  Jewish  and  Gentile 
lands.  It  is  a  narrow  sphere  which  the  church 
occupies,  compared  with  that  which  she  was  or- 
ganized to  occupy,  and  for  the  occupation  of 
which  she  possesses  such  augmented  means,  in- 
fluence, and  facilities.  We  want  an  exercised 
conscience,  in  this  matter ;  we  want  the  love  of 
Christ ;  we  want  the  strong  and  healthy  pulsa- 


THE  MEANS  OF  EXTENDING  GOD'S  KINGDOM.        155 


tions  of  glowing  piety.  The  stream  has  set  in ; 
it  is  flowing  on  silently;  but  it  must  have  a 
wider  and  deeper  channel.  Much  do  we  need 
to  prove  the  preciousness  and  power  of  the 
heart-searching,  wrestling,  effectual  prayer,  "thy 
kingdom  come," 

Where  there  are  professions  of  piety,  but  no 
genuine  piety  at  heart,  there  is  no  interest  ex- 
cited for  the  coming  of  God's  kingdom.  The 
spiritual  welfare  of  men,  the  honor  and  glory  of 
the  King  of  Zion,  have  no  place  in  the  bosom  of 
the  man  who  "  liveth  to  himself."  The  phi- 
lanthropy that  terminates  in  the  temporal  well- 
being  of  men,  is  not  the  noble  and  disinterested 
charity  of  the  Bible.  The  charity  of  the  Bible 
is  stronger  than  the  ties  of  humanity ;  it  draws 
closer  than  all  other  ties.  It  attracts  soul  to 
soul.  It  forms  a  bond  of  attachment  to  those 
who  are  far  off,  as  well  as  those  who  are  near. 
It  is  a  sympathy  which  includes  men  of  every 
class  and  clime,  and  will  never  be  fully  gratified, 
until  that  bright  day  when  the  Son  of  David 
shall  have  dominion  from  sea  to  sea,  and  from 
the  river  to  the  ends  of  the  earth. 


CHAPTER  VIL 


THE  WILL  OF  GOD  PERFORMED  ON  EARTH. 


"€\)^  Win  k  hm  m  ((Fartli  as  it  b  iu  WtmmJ' 

There  is  no  higher  or  more  absolute  author- 
ity, than  that  one  being  should  claim  the  right 
of  governing  another  by  his  oiv7i  ivill.  Yet  such 
is  the  government  of  God.  It  is  monarchy  ;  ab- 
solute monarchy.  He  is  the  sole  governor,  and 
makes  his  will  the  rule  of  action  to  all  creatures. 
His  views  of  right  and  wrong,  his  thoughts  of 
propriety  and  impropriety,  are  the  rule.  In  a 
universe  like  ours,  there  must  be  a  monarchy 
as  absolute  as  this,  or  there  is  no  government 
at  all. 

God's  right  thus  to  give  law,  is  founded  on  his 
original  and  underived  supremacy.  The  eter- 
nity of  his  existence,  the  supremacy  of  his  wis- 
dom, power  and  goodness,  so  infinitely  above 
those  of  all  creatures,  give  him  the  throne,  and 
make  him  the  monarch.  It  is  a  monarchy  which, 
however  unsafe  in  other  hands,  is  safe  in  his.    It 


THE  WILL  OF  GOD  PERFORMED  ON  EARTH.   155 


is  a  monarchy  in  which  all  holy  beings  delight, 
and  would  not  exchange  for  any  other  form  of 
government.  Hence  we  are  taught  to  pray, 
"  Thy  will  be  done  on  earth  as  it  is  in  heaven  !" 
There  can  be  but  one  opinion  as  to  the  import 
of  the  phrase,  the  ivill  of  God,  as  it  is  here  used. 
The  phrase  itself  is  taken  in  the  Scriptures  in  a 
double  sense ;  sometimes  denoting  that  which 
shall  be,  and  sometimes  that  which  ought  to  be. 
The  former  is  the  will  of  God  in  his  providence, 
or  that  which  he  has  purposed ;  the  latter  is  the 
will  of  God  in  his  law,  or  that  which  he  requires. 
This  distinction  should  be  clearly  stated  and 
understood.  When  the  Saviour  says,  "For 
whosoever  shall  do  the  will  of  God,  the  same  is 
my  brother,  and  my  sister,  and  mother;"  the 
meaning  of  the  phrase  is  the  laws  and  coinmand- 
ments  of  God.  So  when  we  read  of  those  who 
"  do  the  will  of  God  from  the  heart ;"  of  standing 
perfect  and  complete  in  all  the  will  of  God;  of 
"  living  not  in  the  lusts  of  men,  but  to  the  will  of 
God;  in  these  and  similar  passages  the  import 
of  the  phrase  is  the  same  with  that  just  men- 
tioned. But,  we  find  the  same  phrase  frequently 
used  in  a  different  sense.  Paul  says,  "  For  who 
hath  resisted  his  will;''^  "Who  worketh  all  things 
after  the  counsel  of  his  own  will.'''  The  Saviour 
says,  in  view  of  the  cross,  "  Not  my  will,  but 
thine  be  done  !"     And  John  says,  "  If  we  ask 


156  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


anything  according  to  his  will,  he  heareth  us." 
In  these  last  mentioned  passages,  the  phrase 
signifies  not  the  laws  and  commands  of  God,  but 
the  divine  purpose  or  decree. 

These  two  are  very  different  things.  The  di- 
vime  purpose  extends  to  the  irrational  and  ma- 
terial, as  well  as  to  the  rational  and  spiritual 
creation ;  the  divine  law  extends  only  to  that 
which  is  spiritual  and  rational.  The  divine  pur- 
pose includes  all  that  God  means  should  take 
place ;  the  divine  law  only  that  which  he  re- 
quires and  forbids.  The  divine  purpose  ex- 
presses no  authority,  and  no  moral  obligation, 
and  is,  therefore,  never  a  rule  of  action  ;  the 
divine  law  expresses  both,  and  is  a  rule  of  ac- 
tion to  all  to  whom  it  is  revealed.  The  divine 
purpose  has  respect  to  events,  and  is  concerned 
with  the  consequences  of  human  conduct,  while 
the  divine  law  respects  the  conduct  of  intelli- 
gent agents  as  such,  and  has  nothing  to  do  with 
its  events  and  consequences. 

That  it  is  the  perceptive  will  of  God  to  which 
this  prayer  refers,  cannot  admit  of  a  question. 
An  object  obtained,  cannot  be  the  object  of  pe- 
tition. This  request  cannot  relate  to  God's  pur- 
pose, because  his  purpose  is  accomplished  as  well 
on  the  earth  as  it  is  in  heaven.  "  His  counsel 
shall  stand,  and  he  will  do  all  his  pleasure."  But 
it  is  not  so  with  his  law.     His  perceptive  will  is 


THE  WILL  OF    GOD   PERFORMED   ON   EARTH.       157 


accounted  as  a  strange  thing ;  it  is  transgressed, 
abused,  and  vilified  ;  and  however  venerated  in 
higher  and  purer  worlds,  is  despised  and  tram- 
pled on,  on  earth.  It  is  this  great  moral  code, 
therefore,  to  which  this  prayer  refers,  and  the 
precepts  and  prohibitions  of  which  we  are  taught 
to  pray,  may  be  as  sacredly  regarded  on  earth, 
as  they  are  in  heaven. 

How  then  is  the  ivill  of  God  done  in  heaven  ? 
The  answer  to  this  inquiry  is  the  key  to  this  re- 
quest. Heaven  is  a  section  of  the  divine  em- 
pire, and  as  really  under  the  binding  force  of  the 
moral  law,  as  any  other  part  of  God's  dominions. 
The  same  God  exists  and  governs  there,  that 
exists  and  governs  here.  Essentially  the  same 
moral  relations,  and  the  same  laws  founded  on 
those  relations,  exist  there,  which  exist  in  this 
lower  world.  And  these  obligations  are  not 
only  acknowledged  and  felt,  but  obeyed  there, 
as  in  no  other  world. 

The  will  of  God  is  there  done  in  all  its  parts. 
All  the  obligations  of  the  law  are  there  fulfilled; 
every  precept  and  every  prohibition  is  regarded 
with  reverence  and  love.  Where  God's  com- 
mand is  known,  the  thing  commanded,  what- 
ever it  be,  is  done.  There  is  no  government 
there  but  the  government  of  the  divine  will. 
All  those  affections  of  mind  which  are  due  from 
creatures  to  their  Creator,  from  subjects  to  their 


158  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


supreme  Lord,  from  pensioners  upon  the  divine 
bounty  to  the  first  and  the  greatest  of  all  givers, 
and  from  redeemed  sinners  to  their  all-sufficient 
and  gracious  Redeemer,  are  there  enkindled 
and  sustained.  All  that  is  elevating  in  compla- 
cency and  confidence  in  the  divine  character ; 
all  that  is  amiable  and  lovely  in  that  lowliness 
and  sweetness  of  mind,  that  are  the  fruits  of  the 
divine  Spirit ;  all  that  is  peaceful  in  resignation, 
joyous  in  gratitude,  and  adoring  in  praise,  is 
there  mingled  and  blended  in  the  beauties  of 
holiness. 

There  are  no  rival  deities  there,  and  no  idol- 
atry to  subvert  the  throne  of  the  Most  High. 
There  is  no  profanity  or  irreverence ;  but  every 
expression  of  filial  fear.  There  is  no  violation 
of  the  Sabbath ;  that  glorious  world  is  one  vast 
temple,  and  its  revolving  ages  one  everlasting 
day  of  holy  rest.  There  is  no  form,  or  modifica- 
tion of  holy  affection  toward  God,  which  does 
not  there  exist,  and  is  not  acted  out. 

Nor  are  there  any  violations  there  of  the 
great  law  of  love  to  fellow  intelligences.  There 
are  no  infringements  upon  the  claims  of  social 
piety ;  no  mutual  relations  inverted ;  no  ties 
torn  asunder;  no  principles  of  subordination 
destroyed;  no  envious,  or  cold,  unfeeling  heart. 
There  is  no  murderous  hand,  or  malignant  in- 
tention; no  furious  and  revengeful  passion ;  no 


THE   WILL   OF   GOD   PERFORMED   ON   EARTH.       159 


harshness  or  cruelty;  no  unkindness,  or  even 
inattention  and  negligence.  There  are  no  re- 
volting scenes  of  impurity,  no  haunts  of  licen- 
tiousness, and  no  lascivious  eye.  There  are  no 
locks,  nor  bars,  nor  prisons,  nor  courts  of  justice, 
nor  pilfering,  nor  j)lunder,  nor  any  species,  or 
suspicion  of  fraud.  There  is  no  lying  tongue, 
or  covetous  desire.  Truth,  that  strong  bond  of 
society,  that  firm  foundation  of  confidence  and 
intercourse,  remains  inviolate  ;  while  all  those 
inordinate  desires  after  earthly  objects  and  en- 
joyments, which  so  disturb  the  tranquillity  and 
repose  of  earth,  are  subdued  and  extinguished 
by  the  charity  that  seeketh  not  her  own. 
Heaven  presents  the  purest,  noblest,  lov^eliest 
character,  because  it  is  implicitly  subject  to  the 
will  of  God.  It  asks  for  no  reason  of  its  con- 
duct but  God's  will.  And  therefore  its  obedi- 
ence is  perfect  in  all  its  departments.  It  has 
no  blemishes ;  no  cloud  in  its  hemisphere ;  no 
shadow  in  its  horizon ;  no  spot  on  its  disk ;  no 
waxing  and  waning  light ;  but  a  steady,  pure, 
and  full-orbed  splendor. 

The  will  of  God  is  there  obeyed  also  by  all 
its  inhabitants.  In  that  immense  family,  there 
are  diversities  of  rank,  different  orders  of  intel- 
ligence, and  various  measures  of  moral  rectitude, 
as  "one  star  differeth  from  another  star  in  glory." 
There  are   the  angels  who  never  fell,  with  all 


160  THE   MERCY  SEAT. 


their  different  degrees  of  excellence.  There 
are  the  unnumbered  millions  redeemed  from 
among  men,  from  all  the  climes  and  languages 
of  earth,  from  the  little  infant  to  the  tried  piety 
of  hoary  years,  and  from  the  thief  on  the  cross 
to  the  aged  and  martyred  Paul.  But  with  all 
this  varied  extent  and  degree  of  excellence, 
and  all  this  differing  splendor,  the  same  spirit 
pervades  the  whole ;  all  possess  the  same  ele- 
ments of  excellence.  There  is  no  jar  in  their 
society,  and  no  discord  in  their  song.  Within 
the  vast  compass  of  this  immense  population, 
throughout  all  these  unexplored  regions,  amid 
the  whole  of  this  vast  assemblage  of  existen- 
ces, from  the  highest  to  the  lowest,  there  is  not 
a  bosom  that  does  not  glow  with  holy  ardor  to 
do  the  will  of  God.  One  sinning  mind  would 
poison  these  sources  of  joy.  There  is  no  law- 
less planet  there ;  no  unsubjugated  province  ; 
no  land  of  darkness  ;  no  pagan  island  ;  no  hab- 
itation of  cruelty — not  a  dwelling  of  wicked- 
ness, nor  even  a  revolting  heart. 

In  heaven  the  will  of  God  is  also  done  with 
sincerity  and  cheerfulness.  There  is  no  hypocrisy 
there ;  no  formal  sacrifice  is  offered  on  that  al- 
tar. The  outward  conduct  is  there  governed 
by  first  governing  the  willing  and  warm  affec- 
tions. Obedience  is  not  a  yoke  at  which  pure 
and  sinless  spirits  reluctate,  but  in  every  view 


THE   WILL   OF   GOD   PERFORMED   ON    EARTH.       161 


a  pleasant,  agreeable,  delightful  service.  There 
is  no  pensiveness,  no  depression,  no  gloom,  in  that 
blessed  society,  but  all  that  is  buoyant  and  cheer- 
ful. It  is  not  the  abstract  sense  of  duty,  the 
heavy  bond  of  obligation,  the  solemn  and  fearful 
sanction  of  law,  and  the  cold  and  cheerless  im- 
pression of  necessity  merely,  that  constrains  their 
acquiescence.  It  is  the  sweeter,  stronger  cord 
of  love,  irresistibly  fascinating  them  with  its 
charms,  and  drawing  their  willing,  gratified  minds 
as  "  with  the  bands  of  a  man."  In  this  low  world, 
true  religion  is  an  exotic ;  an  unnatural  and  un- 
indigenous  plant,  confined  and  stinted  in  its 
growth,  and  sometimes  a  meagre,  dwarfish,  and 
ungainly  thing.  It  partakes  of  the  cold  soil  and 
cheerlessness  of  this  low  earth  ;  never  arrives  at 
maturity,  and  sometimes  blooms  to  fade.  But 
what  pencil  can  paint,  or  what  poetry  describe 
its  beauty  and  fragrance,  when  transplanted  to 
the  skies  ?  No  longer  some  depressed  and 
drooping  floweret,  it  is  like  Sharon's  rose,  unfold- 
ing its  leaves  on  its  native  bed.  No  longer  weak 
and  sickly,  it  is  like  a  vigorous,  healthy  scion  from 
the  Tree  of  Life,  fair  and  luxuriant,  fragrant  with 
blossoms,  and  yielding  its  fruit  every  month. 
It  is  the  j(fy,  I  had  almost  said  it  is  the  mirth  of 
heaven  to  obey  the  statutes  of  its  King.  Obe- 
dience is  an  employment  which  nourishes,  and 
draws  toward  it  all  their  ardor  and  sensibility. 


162      ^  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


The  perception,  the  reason,  the  judgment,  the 
memory,  are  all  joyfully  employed  in  such  a 
service.  Even  the  imagination,  that  ungoverned 
and  wandering  faculty,  which  here  on  the  earth 
is  so  often  the  sport  of  temptation,  and  the  play- 
thing of  the  arch  Deceiver,  there  exerts  its 
magic  and  ballovvod  influence,  ever  supplying 
the  materials  of  some  new  service,  some  new 
purpose  of  devotement,  some  new  scene  of  still 
more  gratified  holiness  and  exquisite  joy. 
Their  obedience  is  indeed  the  obedience  of 
thought,  and  deliberate  purpose  ;  but  it  is  also 
the  obedience  of  love.  It  has  the  wings  of 
emotion  and  desire.  Love  is  the  element  in 
which  pure  spirits  breathe.  Love  is  the  soul  of 
heaven — strong  and  urgent,  "  swift  to  do  his 
will,  barkening  to  the  voice  of  his  word." 

In  heaven,  the  will  of  God  is  likewise  done  per- 
fectly, and  forever.  Its  holy  inhabitants  are  like 
Him,  because  4;hey  see  him  as  he  is.  Everything 
there  is  so  full  of  God  ;  creation,  providence,  and 
redemption,  are  there  displaying  forth  such  per- 
petual exhibitions  of  the  divine  nature,  that 
they  cannot  but  be  discerned  and  enjoyed;  and 
because  discerned  and  enjoyed,  transform  the 
soul  into  their  own  likeness.  The  flfevv  of  holy 
affections  is  there  constant  and  resistless,  and 
"  clear  as  crystal ;"  and  their  strength  and  vigor 
remain  forever  unabated.     There  are  no  seasons 


THE   WILL   OF   GOD   PERFORMED   ON   EARTH.      163 


of  languor  and  declension,  and  no  apostasy  and 
backsliding.  No  wandering  thought,  no  vain 
desire,  no  unperfected  emotion,  there  creeps  into 
the  soul.  There  is  no  backwardness,  no  unfruit- 
fulness,  but  all  the  activity  and  fervor  which  the 
soul  is  capable  of  exercising.  There  is  no  wea- 
riness, nor  satiety.  Ten  thousand  times  ten 
thousand,  and  thousands  of  thousands,  cease  not, 
day  nor  night,  from  their  active  service,  or  their 
anthems  of  praise.  There,  the  soul  eagerly 
cleaves  to,  affectionately  admires,  and  constantly 
rests  on  God.  Its  thoughts  and  desires  are  con- 
centrated in  this  single  object;  pleased  and 
satisfied  with  God  as  its  portion,  "  acting  from 
him  as  its  Author,  for  him  as  its  Master,  and  to 
him  as  its  End."  Eternity  rolls  on  ;  and  he  that 
is  holy,  is  holy  still. 

Thus  is  the  will  of  God  done  in  heaven,  in 
all  its  parts,  by  every  individual,  sincerely  and 
cheerfully,  perfectly  and  forever.  And  is  there 
not  a  I'eason  for  the  prayer  that  it  should  be  thus 
done  on  earth  ?  For  this  Christ  has  taught  his 
disciples,  in  every  age  of  the  world,  to  pray, 
"  thy  will  be  done  on  earth,  as  it  is  in  heaven.'" 
Why  ought  we  to  pray  thus  ?  Let  us  give  an 
answer  to  this  inquiry. 

It  is  not  out  of  place  to  submit  the  remark,  that 
the  law  of  God  is  no  less  binding  on  the  earth  than  it 
is  in  heaven.  Its  obligations  are  real,  throughout 


164  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


the  whole  range  of  God's  dominions.  Wherever 
intelligent  beings  exist,  they  are  bound  by  it.  If 
angels  are  bound  by  it,  so  are  men ;  and  if  one 
world  of  intelligent  agents  is  bound  by  it,  so  are 
all  worlds.  There  is  no  more  excuse  for  violat- 
ing it  on  earth,  than  for  violating  it  in  heaven. 
Nothing  can  dissolve,  suspend,  or  at  all  impair  the 
obligations  of  men  to  do  the  will  of  God,  as  uni- 
versally, sincerely,  fully,  and  perfectly,  as  it  is 
done  in  heaven.  As  it  alters  not  the  nature  of 
transgression,  that  it  is  committed  in  secret,  or 
in  the  light  of  day,  at  home  or  abroad,  in  the 
eastern  or  western  hemisphere  of  this  terra- 
queous globe ;  so  it  alters  not  its  nature,  that  it 
were  committed  in  the  terrestrial,  rather  than 
the  celestial  sphere.  The  binding  force  of  the 
divine  law  depends  on  the  nature  of  the  Law- 
giver, and  on  the  relations  which  exist  between 
Him  and  his  subjects ;  and  not  until  these  are 
destroyed,  or  altered,  can  there  be  any  change 
in  the  law.  This  is  the  only  true  doctrine  of 
mdral  obligation.  The  \^  ill  of  the  superior  binds 
the  inferior  everywhere.  And  much  reason 
have  we  to  pray  that  this  rebellious  world  may 
recognize,  both  in  theory  and  in  practice,  the 
principle  that  there  is  no  virtue,  but  in  obedi- 
ence to  the  will  of  God. 

But  this  is  not  all.      While  every  man  should 
obey  the  law  of  God,  merely  because  it  is  laWy 


THE   WILL   OF    GOD    PERFORMED  ON  EARTH.        165 


and  an  expression  of  his  will,  it  is  a  right  rule  to 
which  he  is  subject.  It  is  as  reasonable  that  the 
will  of  God  be  done  on  earth,  as  that  it  should  be 
done  in  heaven.  Though  its  reasonableness  does 
not  augment  his  obligations  to  obedience,  yet  is 
it  one  of  the  motives  for  it.  All  the  considera- 
tions which  show  the  reasonableness  of  doing 
God's  will  in  heaven,  also  show  that  it  is  reason- 
able it  should  be  done  on  earth.  Wickedness  is 
unreasonable,  always  and  everywhere ;  nor  is 
there  anything  so  reasonable,  so  beautiful,  so 
lovely,  in  the  universe,  as  obedience  to  God. 
Whatever  is  right,  the  will  of  God  requires  ;  it 
forbids  nothing  but  wickedness.  It  is  impossi- 
ble that  too  much  rectitude  be  required  of  any 
order  of  intelligences,  nor  can  they  be  governed 
by  a  law  that  is  too  holy.  The  inhabitants  of 
earth  are  no  more  dependent  for  holiness,  than 
are  the  inhabitants  of  heaven;  and  if  they  were, 
we  have  not  now  to  learn,  that  the  dependence 
of  men  does  not  render  it  less  reasonable  that 
they  should  do  what  is  right.  Why  is  it  not 
reasonable  that  the  will  of  God  should  be  done 
on  earth,  as  it  is  in  heaven  1  Is  it  reasonable 
for  those  immortal  princes  to  obey  their  sove- 
reign, and  is  it  unreasonable  for  man  ?  Shall 
those  bright  partakers  of  the  divine  glory,  those 
favored  attendants  at  the  heavenly  court,  con- 
sent to  the  law  that  is  good ;  and  shall  men,  ab- 


166  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


ject  and  fallen,  contend  with  their  Maker,  and 
complain  that  his  ways  are  not  equal  ? 

Obedience  to  God's  will  ivould  produce  a  high 
degree  of  happiness  in  the  earth,  as  well  as  in  heaven. 
The  foundation  on  which  the  happiness  of  think- 
ing beings  rests,  is  their  obedience  to  the  divine 
will.  Individually  and  relatively,  as  parts  and 
as  a  whole,  this  earth  would  be  supremely  happy, 
did  it  possess  the  character  of  heaven.  We 
know  the  happy  effects  even  of  the  very  imper- 
fect holiness  which  good  men  possess  in  the 
present  life.  Where  that  moral  transformation 
which  results  in  the  sinless  purity  of  the  heav- 
enly world  is  but  begun,  what  new  affectio-ns 
and  hopes,  what  divine  peace  and  joy  are  im- 
parted to  the  soul !  When  first  the  heart  is  dis- 
solved with  the  mild  influences  of  the  Spirit  of 
grace,  and  imbued  with  the  love  of  God  and 
man,  what  sweet  repose  possesses  it !  Its  strug- 
gles for  a  while  seem  to  be  over;  the  alarms  of 
conscience  are  still.  And  not  until  the  work- 
ings of  iniquity  revive,  are  this  tranquillity  and 
joy  disturbed.  And  when  in  his  progressive 
career  of  sanctification  the  regenerated  man  be- 
comes more  holy,  and  the  power  of  indwelling 
corruption  is  broken  and  prostrate,  how  does  his 
light  break  forth  as  the  morning,  and  his  joys 
become  like  the  spring-tide,  when  it  overflows 
its  banks!     Witness  the  blessedness  of  David 


THE  WILL   OF   GOD   PERFORMED  ON  EARTH.       167 


and  Paul,  and  others  in  later  days,  when  their 
transported  spirits  could  not  utter  their  ecstacy, 
because  clogged  and  fettered  in  this  prison- 
house  of  clay.  Even  this  were  a  prelibation  of 
heaven.  Extended  over  all  the  habitations  of 
men,  it  would  make  this  earth  an  exquisitely 
happy  world.  How  pure  and  transporting  the 
joy,  if,  instead  of  this,  the  will  of  God  were 
obeyed  on  earth  as  it  is  in  heaven  !  Over  all 
the  regions  of  the  globe  would  every  pulse  beat, 
every  heart  throb,  and  every  tongue  respond  to 
the  claims  of  holy  love.  Disorder  and  tumult 
would  be  unknown,  the  oppressor's  rod  would 
be  broken,  and  injustice  and  war  would  no 
more  ravage  the  habitations  of  men.  Individual 
quietude  and  social  joy  would  change  the  face 
of  every  land ;  and  nothing  would  be  seen  but 
spectacles  of  loveliness  and  beauty,  while  every- 
where would  be  heard  the  voice  of  thanksgiving 
and  praise.  How  serene  and  clear  the  light 
that  would  then  be  diffused  over  the  creation ! 
How  rapturous  the  glow  of  every  heart !  How 
thrilling  every  song!  What  a  picture  of  the 
bosom  of  angels!  Like  what  a  "  sea  of  glass" 
would  the  minds  of  men  become,  everywhere 
placid  and  unruffled,  and  without  a  ripple  on  its 
surface  !  What  a  world  were  this,  when  God 
shall  thus  create  Jerusalem  a  rejoicing,  and  her 
people  a  joy  !  and  when,  compared  with  this 


168  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


new,  spiritual  creation,  the  first  heavens  and 
earth  sliall  not  be  remembered,  nor  come  into 
mind! 

Still  further:  God  would  be  as  truly  lionored 
and  glorified  by  the  obedience  of  earth,  as  he  is  by 
the  obedience  of  heaven.  He  is  eminently  exalted 
by  the  sinless  perfection  of  the  heavenly  world. 
Every  tongue  there  speaks  well  of  God ;  every 
mind  sees  him  as  he  is ;  every  object  reflects 
his  glory;  every  heart  loves  and  exalts  him; 
and  the  only  emulation  is  to  ascribe  the  high- 
est honors  to  his  name.  There  is  no  other  way 
of  honoring  and  ex'lting  God,  but  by  doing  his 
will.  When  the  s;  jie  spirit  glows  in  the  bosom 
of  men,  as  in  the  Losom  of  angels,  the  same  hon- 
ors will  be  paid  him  from  the  altars  of  this  world 
that  now  ascend  from  the  heavenly  sanctuary. 
Anticipate  this  delightful  spectacle.  Behold 
these  creatures  of  God,  in  all  their  varieties  of 
habitation  and  name,  and  in  all  the  gradations 
of  their  intellectual  endowment,  never  varying 
from  the  standard  of  rectitude  ;  failing  in  no 
precept ;  unceasingly  devoted  to  their  duty,  and 
from  the  best  spirit ;  chargeable  with  nothing 
that  can  be  condemned  or  reproached ;  all 
doing  the  will  of  God  as  it  is  done  in  heaven  ; 
and  what  a  field  of  light,  what  a  sea  of  glory 
were  presented  by  such  a  renovated  creation ! 
No  longer  would  his  name  be  dishonored,  who 


THE  WILL  OF  GOD  PERFORMED  ON  EARTH.   169 


calls  himself  our  "  Father  that  is  in  heaven  ;"  no 
longer  would  his  government  be  defamed,  his 
designs  impeached  and  opposed,  and  his  honors 
taken  from  him ;  but  everywhere  would  he  be 
acknowledged  as  God  over  all,  blessed  forever. 
Princes  and  subjects,  young  men  and  maidens, 
old  men  and  children,  would  give  him  the 
honor  which  is  his  due.  His  name  would  be 
great  among  the  heathen,  and  in  every  place, 
incense  and  a  pure  offering  would  be  offered  on 
his  altar. 

Nor  is  this  all.  In  some  respects,  God  is 
even  more  honored  hij  the  obedience  of  earth,  than 
by  the  obedience  of  heaven.  The  planet  on  which 
we  dwell  is  a  peculiar  world.  It  has  proper- 
ties and  relations  altogether  peculiar  to  itself. 
There  are  no  such  expressions  of  the  divine 
goodness  made  to  any  other  world,  as  are  made 
to  this.  Nowhere  does  it  assume  the  form  of 
favor  to  the  guilty,  except  to  men.  Nowhere 
else  does  it  flow  through  the  channel  of  a  Sav- 
iour's blood  ;  and  nowhere  else  does  it  cost  so 
many  efforts  of  wisdom  and  power,  throughout 
all  the  dispensations  of  a  widely  extended  prov- 
idence. When  men  on  the  earth  become  holy, 
they  are  a  peculiar  people,  and  "  show  forth  the 
praises  of  him  who  hath  brought  them  out  of 
darkness  into  his  marvelous  light."  They  differ 
from  all  other  beings  in  the  universe.     They 


170  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


sustain  a  relation  to  the  once  atoning  and  now 
reigning  Saviour,  which  other  beings  and  other 
worlds  do  not  sustain.  Others  have  gained  the 
heavenly  inheritance  by  their  own  righteousness; 
inhabitants  of  earth  are  the  purchase  of  the 
Saviour's  blood,  and  the  reward  of  his  obedience 
unto  death.  Others  have  been  created  and  pre- 
served ;  these  have  been  redeemed  and  sancti- 
fied. Others  are  beautiful  in  themselves ;  these 
are  beautiful  through  the  comeliness  which  he 
puts  upon  them,  and  on  that  account,  have 
moral  perceptions,  and  emotions,  and  joys  to 
which  others  are  strangers,  and  a  song  in  which 
others  can  never  unite.  God  is  glorified  by  the 
obedience  of  the  unfallen ;  but  their  love  and 
admiration  flow  forth  in  none  of  the  forms  pecu- 
liar to  redeemed  sinners.  We  are  told,  "  there  is 
joy  in  heaven  over  one  sinner  that  repenteth, 
more  than  over  ninety  and  nine  just  persons 
who  need  no  repentance."  And  who  does  not 
see,  that  when  such  a  population  becomes  holy; 
such  rebels  become  children;  such  outcasts 
heirs  of  God  ;  there  is  glory  to  God  in  the  high- 
est degree  ?  When  it  is  seen  and  known  to 
"  principalities  and  powers  in  heavenly  places," 
that  in  defiance  of  the  machinations  of  the 
Prince  of  darkness,  and  the  invincible  deprav- 
ity of  man,  the  kingdom  of  Christ  and  the  em- 
pire of  mercy  are  triumphant ;  what  honors  will 


THE  WILL  OF  GOD  PERFORMED  ON  EARTH,   171 


be  recovered  to  the  Great  Supreme — in  what 
unequalled  beauty  will  the  reflected  excellence 
of  his  nature  cover  the  earth,  as  the  waters 
cover  the  sea — and  how  will  holy  ones  look 
down  from  heaven  to  say,  "  The  whole  earth  is 
full  of  his  glory !"  How  will  the  mountains 
echo  it  to  the  valleys,  and  the  valleys  roll  it  back 
again  to  the  mountains,  that  "  the  Lord  God 
omnipotent  reigneth !"  How  will  continent 
proclaim  it  to  continent,  and  ocean  waft  it  to 
the  main,  that  ''  the  kingdoms  of  this  world  are 
become  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and  his 
Christ !"  And  what  ascriptions  of  honor,  what 
tlmnderings  of  praise,  in  one  mighty  concert  of 
the  fallen  with  the  unfallen,  like  the  sound  of 
many  waters,  will  pour  forth  their  sublime  and 
unceasing  Allelujahs  to  God  and  the  Lamb  ! 

Such  is  the  import,  and  such  some  of  the  rea- 
sons for  the  petition  urged  in  the  text.  In  view 
of  the  preceding  thoughts,  wiio  may  not  with 
strong  propriety  lay  his  hand  upon  his  mouth  ? 
Mournfully  affecting  to  every  Christian  mind,  is 
the  present  condition  of  the  church  and  the  world. 
I  say  of  the  church,  as  w^ell  as  the  world ;  be- 
cause even  in  her  fairest  and  holiest  portions, 
the  will  of  God  is  so  imperfectly  done.  When 
we  consider  how  much  more  holy  the  people 
of  God  might  become ;  how  much  more  happy 
and  exalted ;  how  much  more  conspicuous  the 


172  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


spiritual  kingdom  of  God  might  be  among  the 
nations,  and  how  much  more  subservient  to  the 
glory  of  its  great  Prince  and  Saviour;  we  feel 
condemned  before  God  and  man. 

If  from  the  church,  we  look  at  the  world,  our 
"  eye  affecteth  our  heart."  It  is  a  world  fallen 
by  its  iniquity,  and  under  the  wrath  and  curse 
of  God.  O  how  vile,  how  abject  it  is ! — how 
dishonored  !  What  indifference  to  God,  what 
practical  atheism,  what  subversion  of  religion 
and  moral  order,  what  sottish  ignorance,  what 
depraved  passions  and  shocking  immoralities 
disfigure  the  aspect,  and  mar  the  form  of  human 
society. 

And  when  w^e  look  beyond  the  pale  of  Chris- 
tian lands,  what  do  we  see,  but  men  sunk  still 
deeper  in  pollution  and  sin,  prostrated  irmvretch- 
edness,  corrupted  and  loathsome,  and  covered 
with  the  pall  of  sin  and  death. 

Can  this  be  the  world  where  men  have  been 
taught  to  pray,  "  Thy  will  be  done  on  earth,  as 
it  is  done  in  heaven  ?"  How  desolate  !  How 
bewildered  !  What  gloom  and  terror  !  "  Dark- 
ness covers  the  earth,  and  gross  darkness  the 
people."  Three-fourths  of  the  world  in  which 
we  dwell  do  not  as  yet  know  that  they  may  call 
God  their  Father,  and  approach  his  throne  in  the 
new  and  living  way.  Not  a  ray  of  light  from 
the   cross  has  ever  descended   on   their   path. 


THE   WILL   OF   GOD   PERFORMED   ON   EARTH.       173 


Over  what  vast  regions  does  the  Prince  of  dark- 
ness extend  his  dominion  !  With  the  exception 
of  a  few  bright  spots,  or  at  best,  a  few  narrow 
zones,  this  dark  and  iron-hearted  empire  en- 
wraps the  globe.  Alas,  that  such  a  picture  should 
ever  be  realized  in  the  vrorld  where  the  Saviour 
died,  and  where  he  has  left  on  record  such  a 
prayer ! 

Yet,  notwithstanding  this,  does  this  very 
iprajer  suggest  a  ground  of  hope.  The  Saviour 
would  not  have  instructed  his  disciples  to  pray, 
as  he  has  here  instructed  them,  had  he  not  de- 
signed to  bring  men  extensively  to  the  know- 
ledge and  obedience  of  his  truth.  He  has  pre- 
dicted that  "  all  the  ends  of  the  earth  shall 
remember,  and  turn  unto  the  Lord,  and  all  the 
kindreds  of  the  nations  shall  worship  before 
him."  Dark  as  is  the  prospect,  therefore,  the 
rays  which  already,  like  the  pale  twilight  of  the 
morning,  pierce  the  gloom,  are  destined  to  shine 
more  and  more  unto  the  perfect  day.  He  who  has 
taughtus  this  prayer  is  "God  manifest  in  the  flesh." 
He  is  the  author  of  that  Gospel  which  is  the 
wisdom  of  God,  and  the  power  of  God  to  salva- 
tion, and  whose  mighty  agency,  like  the  Spirit 
of  God  moving  upon  the  face  of  the  waters,  is 
destined  to  give  form,  order,  and  beauty  to 
this  moral  chaos,  and  create  all  things  anew. 

Yes,  there  is  hope  for  the  recovery  of  this  apos- 


174  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


tate  world.  Our  Emanuel  is  on  the  throne  ;  and 
his  heart  of  love  is  bound  up  in  this  glorious 
consummation.  From  the  top  of  Calvary,  these 
clouds  that  settle  upon  the  earth  are  seen  pass- 
ing away.  Just  as  certainly  as  Jesus  died  and 
rose  again,  "  the  glory  of  the  Lord  shall  be  re- 
vealed, and  all  flesh  shall  see  it  together." 
Whose  heart  shall  not  be  inspirited  with  this 
confidence  ?  To  secure  this  predicted  end, 
God  gave  his  Son  to  die ;  sends  his  Spirit  to 
dwell  with  men ;  reveals  his  word ;  and  lays  on 
his  church  the  responsibility  of  sending  his 
Gospel  to  every  creature.  I  blush  to  ask,  how 
little  have  we  done  that  the  will  of  God  might 
be  performed  on  earth,  as  it  is  in  heaven?  How 
little  have  we  suffered!  and  in  how  few  respects 
have  we  denied  our.selves,  that  these  designs  of 
Heaven's  mercy  may  be  accomplished ! 

Who,  then,  will  not  make  frequent  use  of  this 
great  petition  ?  Whether  we  look  to  Pagan  or  to 
Christian  lands,  in  what  tones  of  solicitude  may 
these  blood-bought  churches  hear  the  cry,  Pi'ay 
for  us,  pray/br  us  !  and  who  will  not  respond,  "thy 
kingdom  come,  thy  will  be  done  on  earth,  as  it  is 
in  heaven  ?  There  wanders  some  poor  Pagan, 
who  never  heard  a  sermon,  nor  saw  a  Bible, 
and  knows  not  that  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ 
cleanseth  from  all  sin.  He  is  intelligent  and 
thoughtful,    but    he   is   the    victim   of   a    dark 


THE   WILL   OP  GOD   PERFORMED   ON   EARTH.        175 


and  dreadful  idolatry.  His  mind  is  merged 
in  the  shades  of  impenetrable  nig^it.  Over  his 
prospects  for  eternity,  are  collected  heavy  and 
dense  clouds  of  unappeased  indignation.  And 
even  here,  where  we  ourselv^es  dwell,  what 
darkness  covers  large  portions  of  the  land. 
Cities,  villages,  colleges,  schools,  families,  the 
rich  and  the  poor,  old  and  young,  in  almost  un- 
told numbers,  are  strangers  to  the  hopes  of  the 
Gospel.  Some  of  them  are  thoughtless,  and 
some  of  them  are  anxious,  and  struggling  for  the 
assurance  of  a  happy  immortality.  We  do  not 
count  them,  either  in  Pagan  or  Christian  lands, 
by  hundreds  or  by  thousands,  but  by  millions — 
millions  living  without  God,  and  soon  to  die 
without  hope! 

Approach  and  see  them  one  by  pae,  as  they 
drop  into  eternity.  It  is  a  melancholy  chamber, 
and  a  dark  hour.  That  face  is  pale.  That  eye  is 
dim  with  tears.  That  bosom  is  torn  with  anguish. 
Those  lips  quiver  with  agony,  and  the  despond- 
ent sufferer  draws  his  last  breath  in  despair! 
One  by  one,  these  millions  are  sinking  into  such 
a  death.  Yet,  through  our  mercy,  they  might 
obtain  mercy ;  immortal  as  they  are,  they  may 
gain  a  happy  immortality. 

O  for  more  of  the  spirit  of  this  precious 
prayer !  The  Saviour  would  have  his  people 
utter  it,  every  day  they  live.     His  word  goes 


176  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


forth  in  vain,  witlioiit  the  prayer  for  his 
accompanying*  grace.  The  most  dishearten- 
ing, the  most  overwhehning  obstacles  oppose 
it  at  every  step.  It  is  not  in  Paul,  nor 
Apollos ;  it  is  not  in  ministers,  nor  means  to 
arouse  the  lethargy,  or  disturb  the  deeply- 
embedded  depravity  of  the  human  heart.  If 
men  are  ever  led  to  do  God's  will,  those  who 
have  an  interest  at  the  throne  of  grace  must  be 
often  on  their  knees.  They  must  stretch  out 
their  hands  unto  God.  They  must  lie  on  their 
faces  at  his  feet.  With  hope  and  confidence, 
and  not  unfrequently  with  strong  crying,  and 
many  tears,  they  must  carry  the  souls  of  men  to 
his  throne.  We  cannot  hope  too  much  from 
him.  We  shall  enjoy  for  ourselves  copious 
showers  of  divine  grace,  as  soon  as  the  spirit  of 
supplication  is  copiously  poured  upon  us  from  on 
high.  The  world  will  enjoy  them,  as  soon  as 
the  churches  have  more  of  the  spirit  of  prayer. 
When  we  come  nearest  the  throne,  then  let  us 
remember  this  precious  request.  If  ever  we 
lean  on  Jesus'  bosom,  and  feel  that  we  have  in- 
tercourse with  him ;  if  ever  we  enjoy  seasons  of 
enlargement  in  prayer,  and  have  the  sweet  con- 
sciousness that  we  are  allowed  to  have  power 
with  God,  let  us  fill  our  mouth  with  arguments, 
and  plead  fervently  and  importunately,  that  his 
will  may  be  done  on  earth,  as  it  is  in  heaven. 


vX 


CHAPTER  Vlll. 


DEPENDENCE   FOR  TEMPORAL  BLESSINGS. 


"  (Bm  n  tjiis  Datj  ntir  Snilij  %mf 

When  the  Great  Teacher  undertakes  to  sum 
up,  in  seven  short  sentences,  the  whole  matter 
of  the  sinner's  prayer,  we  are  to  expect  that 
every  one  of  them  is  of  great  importance.  If 
wise  and  good  men,  or  even  holy  angels,  had 
had  the  forming  of  this  prayer,  while  they  would 
not  have  overlooked  temporal  blessings,  it  is  not 
probable  they  would  have  given  so  prominent  a 
place  to  the  request,  "  Give  us  this  daij  our  daihj 
hreadr  We  cannot  too  often  call  to  mind  that 
all  the  dispensations  of  God  are  consistent  with 
one  another.  Although  he  has  made  man  a 
creature  destined  for  immortality,  he  has  made 
him  to  partake  of  blessings  that  are  mortal.  He 
must  have  food  and  raiment,  with  numberless 
other  attendant  mercies,  in  order  rightly  to  pur- 
sue the  great  ends  of  his  immortality.  "  Your 
heavenly  Father  knoweth  that  ye  have  need  of 


178  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


all  these  things."  It  is  because  he  has  con- 
nected the  highest  principle  of  happiness  with 
the  lowest  gradation  of  that  happiness,  that  in 
this  summary  of  petitions  the  Lord  Jesus  has 
put  so  high  an  estimate  on  the  good  things  of 
the  present  world.  True  religion  neither  idol- 
izes, no"  overlooks  these  things.  It  gives  them 
their  proper  place ;  and  while  it  reproves  and 
condemns  the  avarice  and  sensuality  of  a  world- 
ly mind,  it  at  the  same  time  rebukes  the  stiff 
severity,  the  studied  abstemiousness,  the  pro- 
fessed indifference  to  worldly  good,  w^hich  are 
equally  at  war  with  the  promptings  of  our  na-, 
ture,  and  the  claims  of  duty  to  God,  to  our- 
selves, and  to  our  fellow-men.  Our  object  is 
to  present  some  expansion  of  this  request,  and 
to  select  and  enforce  the  great  principles  it 
contains. 

One  of  these  is,  that  for  the   supply   of 

THEIR    TEMPORAL    AVANTS,    MEN    ARE     DEPENDENT 

ON  God.  Prayer  is  a  distinct  recognition  of  de- 
pendence. When  the  Saviour  puts  the  petition 
into  our  mouths,  "  Give  us  this  day  our  daily 
bread,"  he  not  only  teaches  the  abstract  doc- 
trine of  our  dependencev,  but  that  we  should  be 
in  the  habit  of  acknowledging  it.  Just  in  the 
proportion  in  which  men  lose  sight  of  this 
thought,  or  live  in  the  neglect  of  this  duty,  are 
they  sinking  into  blank  atheism.     Temporal  en- 


DEPENDENCE  FOR  TEMPORAL  BLESSINGS.  179 


joyments  are  no  more  the  result  of  chance  and 
contingency,  than  the  beautiful  and  wondrous 
world  in  which  we  dwell.  Natural  causes  may 
be  the  means  and  instruments  of  their  produc- 
tion, but  they  are  not  the  authors  of  them. 
They  form  no  constituent  part  either  of  the  fir- 
mament above  us,  or  of  the  earth  beneath  us ; 
nor  are  any  of  the  numerous  physical  combina- 
tions which  give  form  and  substance  to  them 
underthe  control  either  of  angels  or  men.  The 
industry  of  man  may  be  employed  in  procuring 
them;  but  his  very  toils  furnish  affecting  admo- 
nitions of  his  dependence. 

We  are  prone  to  stop  at  second  causes  in  our 
survey  of  the  entire  range  of  temporal  good ; 
but  the  spirit  of  genuine  piety  stops  not  short 
of  the  great  First  Cause.  Not  all  the  second 
causes  in  the  universe  ever  gave  fertility  to  the 
harvest  field,  or  clothed  the  silk  worm,  or  called 
into  being  the  humblest  flower.  "  Beware,'* 
said  God  to  his  ancient  people,  "  lest  when  thy 
herds  and  thy  flocks  multiply,  and  thy  silver 
and  thy  gold  is  multiplied,  and  all  that  thou 
hast  is  multiplied;  lest  thy  heart  be  lifted  up, 
and  thou  forget  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  thou 
say  in  thine  heart,  My  power,  and  the  might  of 
my  hand  hath  gotten  me  this  wealth."  This 
were  neither  sound  philosophy,  nor  true  religion. 
"  The  eyes  of  all  wait  upon  thee,  and  thou  givest 


180  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


them  their  meat  in  due  season."  The  provi- 
dence of  God  inweaves  and  immingles  itself 
with  all  the  affairs  and  circumstances  of  men. 
It  extends  itself  alike  to  the  drop  of  a  bucket 
and  to  the  ocean,  to  the  small  dust  of  the  bal- 
ance and  to  the  whole  material  universe,  to 
every  individual  of  the  human  family  and  to 
the  entire  race.  The  goodness  that  visits  the 
greater,  also  visits  the  less.  If  the  meanest  of 
the  human  family  were  too  insignificant  to  be 
noticed,  he  would  be  too  insignificant  to  be 
heard,  and  would  be  alike  absolved  from  the 
duty  and  debarred  the  privilege  of  prayer. 
The  children  of  poverty  and  want  may  have 
deeper  impressions  of  their  dependence  than 
the  sons  and  daughters  of  opulence ;  while  in 
sober  verity,  the  imperial  purple,  the  splendid 
palace,  and  the  sumptuous  fare  of  princes,  are 
as  truly  from  God,  as  the  coarse  garb,  the  shat- 
tered tenement,  and  the  scanty  fare  of  the  beg- 
gar in  his  rags.  The  latter  may  be  more  ready 
to  disclaim  all  reliance  on  other  sources;  be- 
cause their  daily  bread  must  be  dealt  out  to 
them,  and  they  must  beg  it  at  God's  hand. 
But  the  rich  are  not  less  dependent  on  the  same 
Almighty  Parent.  Their  abundant  resources, 
their  wide  domains,  their  splendid  edifices,  their 
costly  equipage,  their  gold  and  credit,  are  all  in 
his  hands  who  gives,  and  takes  away,  when  and 


DEPENDENCE  FOR  TEMPORAL  BLESSINGS.  181 


where  he  pleases.  It  is  not  necessary  for  him 
to  work  a  miracle,  in  order  to  disappoint  the 
expectations  of  the  most  confident;  defeat  their 
proudest  hopes ;  and  overturn  the  loftiest  edi- 
fice their  pride  has  reared. 

Nature  herself  teaches  us  that  our  insufficiency 
is  absolute,  while  God's  sufficiency  is  boundless. 
How  many  secondary  causes,  not  one  of  which  is 
under  any  human  control,  must  be  preserved  in 
successful  operation  in  order  to  secure  his  daily 
subsistence  to  a  single  individual  of  the  human 
family  !  What  a  delicate  and  nice  adjustment 
of  all  the  laws  of  nature,  in  order  to  furnish  him 
food  to  eat  and  raiment  to  put  on !  What  a 
multitude  of  bodies  in  the  planetary  system 
must  be  constantly  and  wisely  directed,  in  order 
to  shelter  him  from  the  summer's  heat  and  the 
winter's  cold  !  What  masses  of  matter  must  be 
arranged  and  propelled  ;  what  orbs  must  shine, 
and  what  clouds  obscure ;  what  vapors  must 
be  arrested  in  mid-air,  or  gently  distil  their 
moisture ;  what  springs  must  be  filled,  and  what 
rivers  must  flow;  what  tempests  must  agitate, 
and  what  zephyrs  must  breathe ;  what  unnum- 
bered processes  in  the  vast  laboratory  of  the  uni- 
verse must  all  be  preserved  in  their  due  and 
fitting  action,  and  how  many  intelligent  agents 
sustained  in  their  course  of  plodding  industry, 
in  order  to  furnish  those  blessings  which  make 


182  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


human  life  cheerful  and  happy !  Nay,  all  this 
is  needful  even  to  furnish  the  wardrobe  of  the 
humblest  cottager ;  or  to  procure  a  cup  of  cold 
water,  or  a  loaf  of  bread,  or  one  poor  barley-corn. 
Had  we  an  angel's  eye  and  wing,  to  follow 
out  and  trace  the  ten  thousand  influences  of  that 
great  First  Cause,  and  mark  his  unwearied  care 
and  offices  of  love,  how  should  we  discern  his 
almighty  and  all-pervading  providence,  and  how 
deeply  should  we  feel  that  "  in  his  hand  is  the 
soul  of  every  living  thing!" 

To  instructions  like  these,  we  may  also  add  the 
lessons  of  personal  experience.  You  began  the 
world  poor;  and  God  has  not  only  taken  care  of 
you,  but  given  you  unexpected  prosperity.  Every 
shower  and  every  drought,  every  storm  and  every 
calm,  every  revolution  in  human  affairs  at  home 
and  abroad,  every  year,  and  it  may  be  every  day, 
while  fraught  with  calamity  to  others,  has  only 
served  to  heap  up  riches  to  yourselves.  Or  it 
may  be  that  it  has  been  your  lot  to  experience 
sad  and  melancholy  reverses.  Your  resources 
have  failed ;  your  riches  have  taken  to  them- 
selves wings,  and  passed  away ;  your  industry 
and  contrivance  have  all  been  in  vain ;  calamity 
after  calamity  has  invaded  your  comforts,  and 
everything  has  seemed  to  be  against  you.  And 
is  there  no  overruling  Providence  in  these 
things  ?    Is  there  no  dependence  of  the  creature 


■^'^.''^ 


DEPENDENCE  FOR  TEMPORAL  BLESSINGS.  183 


upon  the  Creator  ?  "  Who  knoweth  not,  in  all 
these,  that  the  hand  of  the  Lord  hath  wrought 
this  ?"  What  we  ourselves  seem  to  procure,  is 
from  Him ;  what  we  receive  from  others,  is  from 
Him ;  what  comes  to  us  we  know  not  whence, 
we  know  not  how,  is  from  Him.  What,  in  the 
view  of  man,  is  most  contingent,  is  designed  by 
Him.  His  providence  is  daily  employed 'in  this 
wonderful  provision.  Our  dependence  is  as 
absolute  and  unceasing  as  His  superintending 
care  and  bounty. 

Another  principle  contained  in  this  request  is, 

that  WHAT  IS  THUS  SUPPLIED  TO  THE  CHILDREN  OF 
MEN,  IS  TO  THEM  A  MERE    GRATUITY.       Fl'Om  men 

we  can  often  claim  temporal  good;  it  is  ours 
by  contract,  and  for  services  rendered  ;  we  have 
a  right  to  it  by  the  decision  of  law,  and  can  en- 
force that  right  by  legal  process.  But  we  have 
no  such  claim  on  God.  He  owes  us  nothing. 
We  may  use  the  language  of  suppliants,  "  Give 
us  this  day  our  daily  bread ;"  but  we  have  no 
claim  of  merit  or  of  right.  It  is  all  of  his  mercy, 
and  not  of  our  own  deserving.  Man's  depend- 
ence renders  his  daily  bread  God's  gift.  It  be- 
longs to  God;  and  our  lives  themselves  are  his. 
Gabriel  himself  cannot  say  of  the  smallest  and 
obscurest  gem  that  adorns  his  crown,  that  it  is 
of  his  own  procuring.  For  who  hath  first  "  given 
to  the  Lord,  and  it  shall  be  recompensed  to  him 


184  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


again;  for  of  him,  and  to  him,  and  through  him, 
are  all  things."  He  is  not  indebted  to  the 
holiest  of  them;  nor  may  one  among  them  all, 
either  among  the  fallen  or  unfallen,  take  from  a 
thread  to  a  shoe  latchet,  unless  he  first  asks  it  of 
God.  Earthly  good  becomes  ours  only  as  we 
ask,  and  God  gives  it.  The  most  laborious  may 
not  touch  the  fruits  of  the  ground  he  has  culti- 
vated, and  which  he  has  gathered  and  garnered, 
without  first  asking  leave  of  his  heavenly  Father. 
God  requires  us  to  ask;  it  is  promised  only  to 
those  who  ask.  We  have  the  prospect  of  God's 
blessing  with  our  daily  mercies,  only  as  we  ask 
for  them.  They  become  a  curse,  rather  than  a 
blessing,  when  we  take  them  without  asking. 
To  those  who  will  not  lay  it  to  heart  to  give 
glory  unto  his  name,  God  says,  "  I  will  curse 
your  blessings;  yea,  I  have  cursed  them  alrea- 
dy; because  ye  do  not  lay  it  to  heart."  When 
the  haughty  King  of  Babylon  pillaged  the  ves- 
sels of  gold  and  silver  from  the  Temple  at  Jeru- 
salem, He  who  dwelleth  not  in  temples  made 
with  hands  held  him  responsible  for  the  sacri- 
lege. And  He  would  have  men  know,  that  this 
rich  and  beautiful  earth  is  his  temple ;  that  these 
unfathomed  stores  of  wealth  gathered  from  its 
recesses,  or  harvested  from  its  surface,  all  belong 
to  him,  and  that  when  bestowed,  they  are  a  mere 
gratuity,  given  freely,  and  without  any  remune- 


DEPENDENCE  FOR  TEMPORAL  BLESSINGS.  185 


ration  to  their  Author.  The  rich  and  great  have 
as  little  to  give  for  them  as  the  humblest  poor. 
They  themselves  are  nothing,  they  have  nothing, 
they  can  do  nothing,  and  enjoy  nothing,  without 
Him. 

And  if  man's  dependence  renders  his  daily 
bread  God's  gift,  much  more  does  his  sinful- 
ness render  it  so.  As  a  sinner,  he  has  no  right 
to  divine  blessings  of  any  kind.  As  to  the 
creature's  right  to  claim  anything  from  the  Cre- 
ator, it  is  simply  this :  so  long  as  he  remains  in- 
nocent, he  has  a  claim  upon  Him  for  protection. 
It  would  be  wrong  not  to  exempt  him  from 
punishment,  because  he  does  not  deserve  pun- 
ishment. But  when  man,  by  sin,  forfeited 
his  life — the  greater  blessing — his  claim  to  every 
smaller  blessing  was  forfeited  also.  Had  there 
been  no  forfeiture,  there  had  been  no  such  thing 
as  suffering  for  want  of  the  necessaries  of  life ; 
and  this  is  one  form  in  which  God  has  written 
this  forfeiture,  on  man's  actual  condition. 

Fallen,  sinful,  and  sinning  man  ;  man  who  not 
only  owes  God  all  that  he  is  and  has,  but  who 
has  forfeited  all  by  his  transgressions ;  man  who 
has  become  so  deeply  indebted  to  the  divine 
justice,  that  but  for  the  timely  interposition  of 
sovereign  mercy,  nothing  had  awaited  him  but 
the  worm  and  the  flames ;  may  w  ell  understand 
that,    so   far   from  having  any  claims  on  God, 


186  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


whatever  he  receives  that  is  better  than  the 
equitable  recompense  of  his  iniquity,  is  gift,  is 
bounty,  is  the  "  gift  of  God  through  Jesus 
Christ." 

It  is  not  a  thought  to  which  the  minds  of 
Christian  men  are  strangers,  that  their  daily 
bread  is  conveyed  to  them  in  channels  opened 
at  the  cross.  This  otherwise  barren  and  desert 
earth  has  become  fertile,  its  clouds  surcharged 
with  blessings,  and  its  revolving  seasons,  and 
the  patient  toil  of  its  inhabitants,  have  become 
fruitful  in  mercies  only  through  the  mediation 
of  that  Great  Sufferer,  who  arrested  the  sen- 
tence that  would  otherwise  have  consigned  it 
to  destruction.  God  might  withhold  their  daily 
bread,  and  treat  them  better  than  their  deserv- 
ings.  And  when  bestowed,  it  is  without  any 
equivalent  or  compensation.  It  is  a  daily  pres- 
ent ;  it  is  a  donation  from  Him  whose  eye  never 
slumbers  and  whose  goodness  is  never  weary. 

Many  a  man  who  disclaims  all  right  to  the 
bounties  of  God's  providence  in  theory,  has  a 
false  and  secret  sense  of  his  worthiness  of  tem- 
poral good.  We  should  be  disabused  of  this 
ensnaring  thought,  if  we  would  rightly  ask  for 
our  daily  bread.  It  diminishes  our  impressions 
of  the  divine  bounty,  and  weakens  our  sense  of 
grateful  obligation.  If  we  are  made  to  differ 
from  others,  it  is  God  who  makes  us  to  differ. 


DEPENDENCE  FOR  TEMPORAL  BLESSINGS.  187 


God  is  everything  to  us ;  but  what  are  we  to 
him?  If  it  is  a  proof  of  an  ungenerous  and  dis- 
honorable mind  to  be  indifferent  to  the  accepted 
bounty  of  men  ;  and  human  liberality  becomes 
a  thankless  and  irksome  service,  where  it  is  im- 
periously claimed  rather  than  gratefully  ac- 
knowledged. Still  more  ungenerous  and  dis- 
honorable is  it  to  complain  that  heaven's  bounty 
is  scantily,  or  grudgingly  bestowed,  or  when  be- 
stowed liberally,  that  it  is  no  more  than  we  had 
a  right  to  expect.  It  contributes  not  a  little  to 
our  enjoyment  of  God's  goodness  to  dwell  upon 
it  as  his  gift,  and  to  think  of  him  as  the  greatest 
of  givers.  To  know  and  feel  this;  to  feel  it 
when  we  pray,  is  the  cheered  and  grateful  sen- 
timent of  true  piety,  the  blessedness  of  angels, 
the  joy  of  heaven. 

There  is  also  another  principle  of  great  prac- 
tical import  contained  in  this  request.  It 
strongly  inculcates   an   implicit   reliance   on 

THE  DIVINE  GOODNESS  AND  BOUNTY  FOR  ALL  THAT 

WE  NEED.  It  is  a  great  privilege  to  trust  with 
undisturbed  tranquillity  on  the  bountiful  provi- 
dence of  our  Father  who  is  in  heaven.  He  has 
encouraged  us  to  do  this  by  the  very  privilege 
of  prayer.  "  In  all  thy  ways  acknowledge  God ; 
so  shall  thy  barns  be  filled  with  plenty  and  thy 
presses  burst  out  with  new  wine."  "  What 
man  is  there  of  you  that  is  a  father,  who  if  his 


188  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


son  ask  of  him  bread,  will  he  give  him  a  stone ; 
or  if  he  ask  a  fish,  will  he  give  him  a  serpent  ? 
or  if  he  ask  an  egg,  will  he  give  him  a  scorpion  ? 
If  ye  then,  being  evil,  know  how  to  give  good 
gifts  to  your  children,  how  much  more  shall 
your  Father  which  is  in  heaven  give  good  things 
to  them  that  ask  him  ?" 

Nothing  can  be  more  touching  than  such  an 
appeal  as  this.  We  are  needy ;  we  are  un- 
worthy ;  infants  are  not  more  dependent :  yet 
may  we  spread  our  wants  before  him  as  a  child 
before  a  father.  "  The  young  lions  do  lack,  and 
suffer  hunger  ;  but  they  that  seek  the  Lord  shall 
not  want  any  good  thing."  He  gives  his  chil- 
dren "  things  present,"  as  well  as  "  things  to 
come;"  he  assures  the  poorest  of  them  all,  that 
"bread  shall  be  given  him,  and  his  waters 
shall  be  sure."  There  is  no  other  to  whom  we 
may  with  entire  confidence  commit  all  our  tem- 
poral concerns  ;  "  casting  all  our  care  upon  him, 
because  he  careth  for  us."  He  will  not  trifle 
with  our  wants,  nor  "  turn  away  our  prayer,  nor 
his  mercy  from  us."  He  who  fed  Israel  in  the 
desert,  and  Elijah  at  the  brook;  he  who  decks 
the  lily  and  beautifies  the  rose,  will  much  more 
clothe  those  even  of  little  faith.  "  Behold  the 
fowls  of  the  air :  for  they  sow  not,  neither  do 
they  reap,  nor  gather  into  barns ;  yet  your 
heavenly  father  feedeth  them :  are  ye  not  much 


i^ 


DEPENDENCE  FOR  TEMPORAL  BLESSINGS.  189 


better  than  they  ?"  "  The  life  is  more  than 
meat,  and  the  hody  than  raiment  /"  Life  he  has 
already  given ;  and  he  who  bestowed  the  greater 
will  not  withhold  the  less.  He  who  first  gave 
these  mortal  and  perishing  bodies,  and  breathed 
into  them  the  breath  of  life,  unsolicited  and  be- 
fore they  w^ere  asked  for,  will  not,  unless  we 
trifle  with  the  laws  of  his  providence,  and  sin- 
fully neglect  the  appointed  means,  deny  that 
w  hich  is  necessary  to  preserve  the  life  he  gave. 
Nay,  we  have  stronger  grounds  for  confidence. 
"  He  who  spared  not  his  own  Son,  but  delivered 
him  up  for  us  all,  how  shall  he  not  with  him, 
also  freely  give  us  all  things  ?"  After  such  a  de- 
monstration of  his  goodness,  who  will  question  his 
readiness  to  supply  minor  wants,  now  that  there 
is  a  free  and  unimpeded  channel  opened  by  which 
the  divine  goodness  may  flow  to  the  guilty  ? 

There  is  not  only  no  reasonable  desire,  for 
the  gratification  of  which  the  means  are  not 
provided,  but  the  God  of  providence  looks 
beyond  the  circle  of  actual  want,  and  is  sump- 
tuous in  his  provision  for  the  comfort  of  men, 
for  their  convenience,  and  even  for  their  lux- 
ury. "  Marvellous  are  thy  works.  Lord,  God, 
Almighty,  and  that  my  soul  knoweth  right  well ! 
How  precious  are  thy  thoughts  unto  me,  O  God  ; 
how  great  is  the  sum  of  them !  If  I  should 
count  them,  they  are  more  in  number  than  the 


if^^^ 


190  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


sand."  There  is  a  richness,  a  munificence  and 
constancy  in  God's  goodness  which  rebukes  dis- 
trust. Long,  very  long  has  it  been  continued, 
without  any  intermission,  to  this  rebellious  and 
unurateful  world,  extendini?  itself  from  vear  to 
year,  from  century  to  century,  from  age  to  age. 
It  never  slumbers,  and  never  sleeps;  never  relap- 
ses into  a  state  of  insensibility,  or  forgetfulness. 
We  distrust  the  bounty  of  creatures.  It  is 
one  of  the  deepest  trials  to  which  humanity 
is  subjected,  to  be  dependent  on  creatures. 
Men  feel  the  bitterness  in  the  uncertainty  of 
this  dependence,  not  only  because  it  is  hum- 
bling to  their  pride,  but  because  it  defeats  their 
expectations.  But  the  divine  bounty  need  not 
be  distrusted  ;  it  is  never  bestowed  capriciously, 
because  it  takes  its  rise  from  unfailing,  overflow- 
ing sources; — its  sources  are  neither  sealed  up 
by  the  demerits  of  its  objects,  nor  exhausted  by 
their  poverty.  Disquietude  and  distrust,  there- 
fore, are  out  of  place  in  creatures  that  have  ac- 
cess to  God.  Perplexing  uneasiness,  carking 
cares,  corroding  solicitude,  are  worse  than  use- 
less, because  they  render  us  the  less  fitted  to 
ask,  to  receive,  to  labor  and  to  enjoy.  They  are 
at  war  with  piety;  with  the  reliance  the  Bible 
warrants,  and  the  confidence  God  will  not  dis- 
appoint. The  fault  will  be  our  own  if  he  give 
us  not  our  daily  bread,  and  if  we  live  not  secure- 


DEPENDENCE  FOR  TEMPORAL  BLESSINGS.  191 


ly  under  his  care  ;  if  his  sun  shine  not  upon  us 
all  the  day,  and  his  dew  be  all  night  upon  our 
branch  ;  if  we  sing  not  with  the  sweet  Psalmist 
of  Israel,  "  I  will  both  lay  me  down  in  peace 
and  sleep,  for  thou,  Lord,  only  makest  me  dwell 
in  safety  !"  Men  who  profess  to  trust  in  the 
promise  of  God  for  their  eternal  salvation,  are 
often  slow  of  heart  to  trust  him  for  the  things 
of  time.  It  were  w  ell  that  they  bring  their  faith 
to  this  practical  test.  They  give  themselves 
credit  for  more  faith  than  they  have,  who  can- 
not trust  him  for  temporal  favors. 

There  is  yet  another  great  principle  involved 
in  this  request :  it  is  that  our  desires  for  tem- 
poral   GOOD    SHOULD    BE    MODERATE.       "  GivC    US 

this  day  our  daily  breads  This  prayer  regulates 
the  amount  of  our  wants,  and  the  measure  of 
our  desires.  They  are  limited  to  a  competency. 
If  God's  will  so  decide  our  destiny,  "having 
food  and  raiment,"  we  should  "  learn  therewith 
to  be  content."  We  should  be  willing  to  live 
from  day  to  day,  fed  by  God,  and  from  his  table. 
Where  our  own  duty  is  faithfully  performed,  we 
may  not  be  anxious  for  to-morrow's  bread;  God 
would  have  us  ever  coming  to  him.  We  are 
not  sure  of  to-morrow ;  we  may  not  need  his 
bounty  then  ;  for  "  what  is  your  life  ;  it  is  even 
a  vapor  that  appeareth  for  a  little  while,  and 
then  vanisheth  away."     Time  flies,  the  stream 


M 


192  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


of  life  is  ebbing  away.  That  distant,  uncertain 
thing,  to-morrow,  would  have  crowned  the  most 
ardent  hopes,  but  for  the  grave.  When  it  came, 
it  brought  only  a  cypress  wreath.  While  we 
covet  the  good  things  of  this  world,  the  al- 
mond tree  flourishes  on  our  head,  the  shroud 
is  weaving  for  us,  and  the  dark  and  narrow 
house  becomes  our  home.  Whatever  other 
Scriptures  may  justify  a  prudent  forethought  for 
the  things  of  this  world,  the  petition  which  we 
are  amplifying  obviously  gives  no  countenance 
to  the  spirit  of  hoarding  up.  If  a  Christian 
man  were  to  make  the  experiment,  he  would 
find  it  a  very  difficult  thing  to  pray  for  great 
wealth.  The  spirit  of  covetousness  and  of 
prayer  do  not  dwell  together  in  the  same  bosom. 
We  are  instructed  to  ask  only  as  we  need ; 
there  is  danger  in  asking  more.  God  may  give 
more,  but  it  is  not  safe  to  ask  for  more,  lest  he 
should  say  of  us  as  he  did  of  his  restive  and 
grasping  people  of  other  days,  "  I  gave  them 
their  request,  but  sent  leanness  into  their 
souls." 

It  is  a  beautiful  remark  of  Lord  Bacon,  bad 
as  he  was,  "  Seek  not  proud  wealth ;  but  such 
as  thou  mayest  get  justly,  use  soberly,  distribute 
cheerfully,  and  leave  contentedly."  Wealth  is 
desirable,  not  for  its  own  sake,  not  merely  for 
the  wants  it  supplies.     In  itself,  it  is  an  abstract. 


DEPENDENCE  FOR  TEMPORAL  BLESSINGS.  193 


imaginary  thing,  and  where  it  is  possessed,  not 
imfrequently  creates  more  wants  than  it  grati- 
fies. It  is  desirable,  mainly,  to  augment  influ- 
ence, and  extend  the  facilities  of  doing  good. 
That  accomplished  statesman  and  jurist,  the  late 
William  Wirt,  a  name  that  will  be  long  illus- 
trious and  venerated  in  American  history,  on 
this  topic  makes  the  following  touching  observa- 
tions :  "  Excessive  wealth  is  neither  glory  nor 
happiness.  The  cold  and  sordid  wretch  who 
thinks  only  of  himself;  who  draws  his  head 
within  his  shell,  and  never  puts  it  out,  but  for 
the  purpose  of  lucre  and  ostentation  ;  who  looks 
upon  his  fellow-creatures,  not  only  without  sym- 
pathy, but  with  arrogance  and  insolence,  as  if  they 
were  made  to  be  his  vassals,  and  he  to  be  their 
lord ;  as  if  they  were  made  for  no  other  purpose 
than  to  pamper  his  avarice,  or  to  contribute  to  his 
aggrandizement;  such  a  man  may  be  rich,  but, 
trust  me,  he  never  can  be  happy,  nor  virtuous, 
nor  great.  There  is  in  a  fortune  a  golden  mean, 
which  is  the  appropriate  region  of  virtue  and  in- 
telligence. Be  content  with  that ;  and  if  the 
horn  of  plenty  overflow,  let  its  droppings  fall 
upon  your  fellow-men;  let  them  fall  like  the 
droppings  of  honey  in  the  wilderness,  to  cheer 
the  faint  and  weary  pilgrim." 

It  is  a  sad  thought,  that  wealth  is  essential 
to  distinction.     It  is  not  so.     The  voice  of  con- 

9 


194  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


science,  the  voice  of  reason,  the  voice  of  God, 
announces  it  is  not  so.  Wealth  alone  is  not 
worth  living  for.  Sigh  not  for  wealth.  Envy 
not  the  splendor  and  ease  of  the  affluent.  The 
most  wealthy  are  often  the  most  in  want.  "  A 
man's  life  consisteth  not  in  the  abundance  of  the 
things  w^hich  he  possesseth."  Where  wealth  is 
the  most  eagerly  sought  after,  it  is  the  least 
satisfying.  No  wise  man  will  ever  venture  to 
pray  that  he  might  be  rich.  Let  a  man  be 
thankful,  if  by  exemplary  diligence  he  can  pro- 
cure a  comfortable  living ;  if  with  this  he  can 
be  cheerful  and  happy,  he  has  the  earnest  of 
more,  and  what  is  of  much  greater  consequence, 
he  has  the  pledge  that  more  will  not  be  his 
ruin.  An  eminent  merchant  of  this  metropolis, 
distinguished  not  less  for  his  liberality  than  his 
integrity  and  success  in  business,  and  who  was 
a  most  exemplary  ruling  elder  in  one  of  the 
churches,  remarked  to  the  writer  of  these  pages, 
many  years  ago,  "  Sir,  God  has  been  pleased  to 
give  me  a  large  share  of  this  world's  goods;  but 
I  have  never  dared  to  ask  for  more  than  my 
daily  bread."* 

It  is  no  common  attainment,  rightly  to  reg- 
ulate our  desires  for  temporal  blessings.  There 
is  nothing  in  regard  to  which  a  good  man  may 
be    more  easily    beguiled    and    blinded,    or   in 

*  The  late  Jonathan  Little. 


DEPENDENCE  FOR,  TEMPORAL  BLESSINGS.  195 


which  he  may  trust  his  own  heart  less.  All 
our  desires  and  requests  for  temporal  mercies 
should  be  constantly  and  implicitly  referred 
to  the  will  of  God.  He  only  knows  what  is 
best  to  give,  and  He  only  is  able  and  willing 
to  dispense  his  bounty  in  that  measure  wiiich  is 
dictated  by  unerring  wisdom.  This  should 
satisfy  us.  Not  to  be  satisfied  with  this,  is  to 
have  the  heart  of  a  rebel. 

Our  desires  for  this  world  should  also  all  be 
regulated  by  desires  still  more  earnest  for  spirit- 
ual blessings.  This  is  the  great  object  for 
which  we  should  live  and  labor.  "Seek  ye 
first  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  his  righteous- 
ness." "Whether  ye  eat  or  drink,  or  what- 
soever ye  do,  do  all  to  the  glory  of  God."  We 
ought  to  be  deeply  anxious,  and  the  prayer 
should  often  be  on  our  lips,  that  we  may  not  be 
among  those  to  whom  God  gives  all  their  portion 
in  this  life.  Better,  a  thousand  fold,  to  live  and 
die  like  Lazarus,  than  like  Dives,  and  hear  the 
affecting  admonition  at  the  last,  "  Son,  remem- 
ber that  thou  in  thy  life-time  receivedst  thy 
good  things."  It  was  the  prayer  of  Agur,  "  Give 
me  neither  poverty  nor  riches ;  feed  me  with 
food  convenient  for  me :  lest  I  be  full,  and  deny 
thee,  and  say,  Who  is  the  Lord ;  or  lest  I  be 
poor,  and  steal,  and  take  the  name  of  God  in 
vain."      Abject   poverty  may  be   best  for   us; 


196  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


when  it  is  so,  God  will  send  it ;  when  he  sends 
it,  it  becomes  us  to  submit  to  his  providence, 
without  repining;  and  when  we  are  thus  sub- 
missive, he  will  give  grace  to  preserve  us  from 
its  snares. 

Still  less  can  the  human  heart  be  trusted  with 
overgrown  riches.  Christian  men  who  make  it 
an  object  to  be  rich,  even  under  the  expectation 
of  being  more  useful,  are  very  apt  to  impose  upon 
themselves.  "  They  that  will  be  rich,  fall  into 
temptation  and  a  snare."  "  He  that  maketh  haste 
to  be  rich  shall  not  be  innocent."  Great  wealth 
is  very  apt  to  breed  forgetfulness,  and  contempt 
of  God.  In  giving  the  power,  it  is  very  apt  to 
induce  the  habits' of  self-indulgence  and  luxury. 
It  cherishes  that  "  pride  of  life"  which  is  so  un- 
friendly to  the  claims  of  the  gospel.  It  fosters 
that  feeling  of  personal  independence  which 
leads  the  soul  to  lean  on  earth,  and  make  not 
God  its  refuge.  It  strengthens  that  natural  at- 
tachment to  the  things  that  are  seen  and  tempo- 
ral, which  renders  it  so  "  hard  to  enter  into  the 
kingdom  of  God,"  and  which  it  is  one  of  the 
great  objects  of  Christianity  to  subdue.  "  Cov- 
etousness  is  idolatry."  There  is  little  room  in 
the  heart  for  God  where  it  is  preoccupied  by  the 
world.  The  love,  worship,  and  service  of  God 
are  excluded  by  another  deity;  the  loyalty 
which  ought  to  be  felt  to  the  Great  Supreme  is 


DEPENDENCE  FOR  TEMPORAL  BLESSINGS.  197 


transferred  to  another  sovereign.  True  piety 
itself  is  very  apt  to  be  stinted  in  its  growth,  and 
to  wither  away  under  the  burning  sun  of  pros- 
perity ;  it  loses  its  strength  and  healthfulness 
when  nursed  in  the  lap  of  pride  and  luxury. 
The  unction  perishes  from  the  heart,  where  it  is 
overwhelmed  by  the  cares  and  perplexities  of 
opulence.  Good  men,  when  once  they  become 
rich,  find  themselves  insensibly  attached  to  their 
gold  and  their  merchandise,  their  territory  and 
their  enterprises,  their  influence  and  the  splen- 
dor of  their  name.  They  become  avaricious 
and  grasping ;  and  before  they  are  aware  of  it, 
feel  embarrassed  in  their  spiritual  course,  and 
find  that  they  have  new  enemies  to  contend 
with,  and  mountains  of  difficulty  to  travel  over 
in  their  heavenward  career.  They  have  little 
time  for  reading,  prayer,  reflection,  and  Chris- 
tian intercourse.  It  is  not  often  that  you  find  a 
wealthy  Christian  a  burning  and  shining  light. 
I  have  often  wondered  why  it  is,  that  so  many 
who  in  their  youth  were  distinguished  for  Chris- 
tian fervor,  meekness,  devotion  and  activity, 
should  in  middle  life  become  so  cold  and  lan- 
guid. The  simple  truth  is,  they  have  become 
rich.  Thorny  cares  have  sprung  up,  and  over- 
powered, and  choked  the  word,  so  that  it  has 
become  unfruitful.  There  may  be  instances  in 
which  such  persons  become  more  bountiful ;  but 


198  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


it  is  a  mistake  to  suppose  that  their  liberality  is 
an  offset  for  their  deficiencies  in  piety. . 

I  would  not  have  these  remarks  misunder- 
stood. Men  may  be  rich  and  yet  be  pious  ;  nor 
are  there  wanting  lovely  exemplifications  of  un- 
ostentatious and  active  piety  among  those  who 
are  the  most  successful  in  the  world.  And  they 
may  be  pious  and  yet  be  poor — poor  even  to  in- 
digence. Grace  can  surmount  the  obstacles  of 
both  these  extremes.  But  this  is  no  evidence 
that  our  desires  after  the  good  things  of  this 
world  ought  not  to  be  moderate  ;  nor  that  the 
medium  between  riches  and  poverty  is  not  the 
safest  condition  for  fallen  man.  The  Saviour 
has  taught  us,  in  this  prayer,  to  seek  a  compe- 
tency in  the  wisdom  and  bounty  of  his  provi- 
dence ;  to  seek  more  is  neither  pious  nor  wise. 
"  Godliness,  with  contentment,  is  great  gain  ; 
for  we  brought  nothing  into  this  world,  and  it  is 
certain  we  can  carry  nothing  out."  God  ap- 
proved the  prayer  of  Solomon,  because  he  de- 
sired a  wise  and  understanding  heart,  rather 
than  riches  or  long  life.  The  happiest  man  is 
he  who  most  gratefully  enjoys  and  makes  the 
best  use  of  whatever  God  is  pleased  to  bestow. 
The  "  providence  of  God  is  his  surest  ^estate  ;" 
his  bounty  his  best  treasure  ;  his  fatherly  care 
his  most  certain  and  comfortable  supply.  He  stays 
himself  upon  God,  and  his  cheerful  language  is. 


DEPENDENCE  FOR  TEMPORAL  BLESSINGS.  199 


"  The  Lord  is  my  shepherd  ;  I  shall  not  want. 
He  maketh  me  to  lie  down  in  green  pastures ; 
he  leadeth  me  beside  the  still  waters.  He 
anointeth  my  head  with  oil ;  my  cup  runneth 
over.  Surely  goodness  and  mercy  shall  follow 
me  all  the  days  of  my  life  !" 

Such  are  some  of  the  principles  involved  in 
the  petition,  "  Give  us  this  day  our  daily  bread." 
We  may  well  cherish  the  spirit,  of  this  request. 
It  becomes  us  as  God's  creatures,  and  as  his 
children.  Though  we  may  have  felt  his  scourge, 
we  have  much  to  be  thankful  for,  which  we 
should  never  forget.  Would  that  our  hearts 
were  more  truly  touched  with  a  sense  of  his 
goodness  !  Man's  ingratitude  is  affecting  proof 
of  his  alienation  from  God.  I  had  well  nigh 
said,  it  is  difficult  to  account  for  it,  even  upon 
the  principles  of  his  apostasy.  Men  feel  deeply 
in  seasons  of  trial;  they  dwell  upon  their  losses; 
they  magnify  their  afflictions ;  but  how  rarely 
do  they  dwell  intensely  on  their  mercies,  and 
magnify  the  expressions  of  the  divine  bounty ! 
How  soon  they  forget  them;  what  weakness 
and  inconstancy  of  heart  do  they  betray  in 
those  recollections  which  ought  to  be  the  most 
grateful  and  permanent !  Scarcely  have  they 
received  one  favor  but  they  are  looking  for  an- 
other, and  complain  if  it  is  not  given.  They 
may  be  slow  in  admitting  the  abstract  thought 


200  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


that  God  is  indebted  to  them;  yet  they  too 
often  feel  and  conduct  themselves  as  though,  in 
withholding  his  bounty,  he  were  actually  doing 
them  an  injury.  A  grateful  mind  is  a  happy 
mind.  It  is  a  peaceful,  a  joyous  mind.  It  is 
the  zest  of  joy. 

How  little  do  we  know  of  the  emphasis  and 
urgency  of  the  request,  "  Give  us  this  day  our 
daily  bread  !"  The  stress  of  want  compels  men 
to  praij.  That  prodigal  who  is  famishing  with 
hunger,  knows  how  to  crave  the  crumbs  that 
fall  from  the  table  of  the  divine  bounty.  That 
daughter  of  sorrow  and  want,  who  has  wept  over 
her  last  loaf,  and  knows  not,  after  all  that  her 
ingenuity  can  devise,  where  she  is  to  look  for 
the  supplies  of  the  passing  hour,  knows  the  im- 
port of  the  words,  "  give  me  this  day  my  daily 
bread."  The  time  may  come  when,  if  you  have 
never  prayed  before,  you  too  may  feel  the  im- 
port of  such  a  request  as  this.  Your  children, 
too,  may  learn  its  import,  and  kneeling  at  your 
feet,  be  taught  to  say,  "  Our  Father,  who  art 
in  heaven,  give  us  this  day  our  daily  bread." 
And  shall  nothing  but  dependence  thus  realized 
drive  you  from  all  other  resources,  to  God  alone  ? 
nothing  but  poverty  and  want  lead  you  and 
them  thus  to  pray  ? 


CHAPTER  IX. 


PRAYER    AND    PAINS. 


"§m  m  tills  Sfltj  ntir  Ddltj  foxnV 

In  exhibiting,  as  we  have  done  in  the  pre- 
vious chapter,  some  of  the  great  principles 
recognized  in  the  request,  "  Give  us  this  day 
our  daily  bread,"  we  have  endeavored  to  mag- 
nify the  creature's  dependence,  and  God's 
bounty.  We  would  not  so  represent  either,  as 
to  overlook  the  fact  that  God  deals  with  men  as 
rational  and  active  creatures,  and  that,  as  such, 
they  are  bound  to  make  use  of  their  reason  and 
their  activity. 

The  law  of  reason  and  nature,  and  the  law 
of  grace  are  in  this  respect  perfectly  coincident. 
Just  as  there  ever  has  been  a  difficulty  in  the 
method  of  redemption  by  Christ  Jesus  in  recon- 
ciling the  activity  of  man  with  his  dependence, 
has  there  been  a  difficulty  in  reconciling  the 
dependence  of  men  on  God  for  their  daily  sub- 
sistence with  the  necessity  of  effort   on  their 


202  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


part  to  procure  it.  But  the  oracles  of  God 
teach  and  insist  on  both  these  truths ;  they  call 
upon  men  to  "  work  out  their  own  salvation 
Tvith  fear  and  trembling,  because  it  is  God  who 
worketh  in  them  to  will  and  to  do,  of  his  good 
pleasure  ;"  and  they  call  upon  them,  if  they 
would  have  their  daily  bread,  not  to  look  for  it 
in  the  neglect  of  those  well-known  laws  of  his 
providence,  which  he  has  established  for  their 
conduct  in  the  common  affairs  of  human  life. 

Man's  dependence  on  God  for  his  daily  sub- 
sistence, leaves  all  the  motives  and  all  the  in- 
fluences of  human  activity  and  enterprise  pre- 
cisely where  it  found  them.  No  man  may  ex- 
ercise a  presumptuous  confidence  in  the  divine 
bounty — a  confidence  which  gives  him  hope  in 
the  neglect,  or  violation  of  his  known  duty. 
God  is  the  giver  of  his  daily  bread ;  but  he  him- 
self has  a  part  to  act  in  procuring  it.  God's 
blessing  is  to  be  sought  and  hoped  for  only  in 
the  due  and  proper  use  of  his  own  powers. 

The  purposes  of  God,  be  they  what  they 
may,  are  never  carried  into  effect  without  the 
means  by  which  they  were  intended  to  be  ac- 
complished. The  means,  in  every  instance, 
form  an  integral  part  of  the  purpose  itself;  they 
sustain,  in  the  original  arrangement  of  the  divine 
mind,  an  indissoluble  and  necessary  connection 
with  the  end;  and  without  them,  there  is  no 


PRAYER  AND   PAINS.  203 


purpose  formed,  no  end  to  be  attained.  There 
is  the  existence  and  influence  of  the  great  pri- 
mary Cause  of  all  things ;  but  this  does  not 
supersede  the  existence  and  influence  of  nume- 
rous proximate  and  instrumental  causes;  be- 
cause these  latter  are  the  selected  means  and 
instruments  by  which  the  great  overruling  Cause 
himself  has  ordained  the  accomplishment  of  his 
purposes. 

Although  he  is  the  great  Giver  of  all  temporal 
blessings,  yet  if  it  be  by  wisely-appointed 
means  and  instruments  that  he  gives,  the  appli- 
cation of  these  means  and  instruments  is  indis- 
pensable to  the  gift.  It  is  so  for  every  gift 
which  God  bestows.  Men,  in  the  common 
affairs  of  human  life,  never  think  of  acting  upon 
any  other  principle.  There  are  things  which 
God  has  to  do,  in  furnishing  his  creatures  with 
food  and  raiment ;  and  there  are  things  which 
his  creatures  themselves  have  to  do.  The  place 
which  he  occupies  is  one  which  if  he  do  not  fill, 
it  is  in  vain  that  they  occupy  the  place  which  he 
assigns  to  them ;  while,  if  they  occupy  not  the 
intermediate  places  assigned  to  them,  the  series 
of  his  operations  is  left  incomplete.  With  his 
work  of  beneficence  they  have  nothing  to  do, 
save  gratefully  to  acknowledge  that  it  is  his 
work ;  while,  in  their  own  sphere,  they  have 
everything  to  perform,  else  they  may  not  hope  for 


204  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


his  blessing  upon  the  labor  of  their  hands.  What, 
then,  are  the  appointed  means  by  which  a  benefi- 
cent Providence  supplies  the  temporal  wants 
of  men  ?     These  are  mainly  the  following : 

In  the  first  place,  there  is  nothing  in  man's 
dependence  that  dispenses  with  his  oivn  industry. 
His  dependence  does  not  destroy  the  obligations 
under  which  he  is  placed  by  the  law  of  nature ; 
and  one  of  these  is  diligence  in  his  calling.  It 
is  so  employing  his  time,  and  the  talents  com- 
mitted to  him,  as  to  turn  them  to  good  account. 
He  owes  it  to  his  Maker,  to  society,  to  himself, 
to  put  forth  his  exertions  to  some  valuable  end. 
He  who  so  richly  endowed  man  with  such  diver- 
sified powers  of  body  and  mind,  and  rendered 
him  capable  in  so  many  ways  of  benefitting  him- 
self and  his  fellow-men,  has  not  denied  him  a 
w  ide  and  varied  field  wherein  he  may  exert  the 
powers  so  freely  bestowed.  Useful  occupation 
is  his  appropriate  employment;  without  it,  he 
will  never  answer  the  great  end  of  his  existence. 
Exertion,  vigorous,  persevering  exertion,  com- 
mends itself  to  the  texture  and  constitution  of 
his  body  and  mind.  An  unoccupied  and  idle 
man  countervails  all  the  laws  both  of  his  animal 
and  intellectual  frame,  and  wages  war  upon 
every  organ  of  his  material,  and  every  faculty  of 
his   immaterial    being.      He   is    like    children 


PRAYER  AND   PAINS.  205 


among  men  ;  he  is  like   the    dead   among   the 
living;  he  buries  himself  alive. 

If  there  are  those  who  so  pervert  the  instruc- 
tions of  the  Bible,  in  regard  to  man's  dependence 
and  God's  bounty,  as  to  rest  satisfied  with  pray- 
ing that  God  would  give  them  their  daily  bread, 
without  themselves  working  for  it,  there  is  one 
very  ready  way  of  rectifying  their  error;  and 
the  Bible  furnishes  it,  when  it  deliberately  de- 
clares, "  He  that  will  not  work,  neither  let  him 
eat."  It  is  the  published  law  of  the  Redeemer's 
kingdom,  that  work  a  man  must,  or  he  shall 
starve.  Religion  offers  no  bounty  to  idleness; 
her  bounty  is  for  those  who  would,  but  cannot, 
labor.  If  Christian  liberality  were  regulated  by 
the  Bible,  men  who  are  able  to  labor,  and  can 
get  anything  to  do,  would  be  constrained  to  ex- 
ertion by  necessity.  It  is  a  law  of  Christianity, 
as  well  as  nature,  that  "  drowsiness  shall  cover 
a  man  with  rags."  And  it  is  both  an  equitable 
and  a  benevolent  law.  It  is  equitable,  because 
there  is  no  equity  in  imposing  a  burden  upon  the 
industrious,  which  is  not  borne  by  their  more 
idle  companions;  it  is  benevolent,  because  in 
relieving  men  from  the  necessity  of  labor,  you 
take  from  them  their  best  heritage,  and  sink 
them  in  irreclaimable  degradation.  If  they  would 
live  above  want,  they  must  pay  the  price  for  it 
in  corresponding  effort ;  if  that  may  be  called  a 


206  THE   MERCY  SEAT. 


price  which,  where  the  habits  of  industry  are  im- 
bibed and  cherished,  is  itself  a  pleasure. 

There  is  no  relief  from  the  operation  of  this 
wise  and  healthful,  this  equitable  and  benevo- 
lent law.  Labor  and  success,  effort  and  attain- 
ment, without  some  special  countervailino^  influ- 
ence, are  rarely  dissevered;  while  the  few  in- 
stances in  which  they  are  so,  form  such  obvious 
and  striking  exceptions,  that  they  only  evince 
the  importance  of  the  rule.  Though  "  the  race 
is  not  to  the  swift,  nor  the  battle  to  the  strong," 
yet  is  it  a  law  which  no  man  may  trifle  with, 
that  men  attain  their  ends  by  the  laborious  and 
steady  pursuit  of  them.  It  is  a  dream  of  the 
imagination  to  look  for  a  competent  portion  of 
the  good  things  of  this  life  without  effort. 

I  have  said  that  the  law  of  labor  is  a  benevo- 
lent law\  An  idle  man  is  always  a  disappointed 
man  ;  he  is  ever  complaining  of  his  misfortunes; 
he  sinks  in  despondency,  because  he  is  sunk  in 
negligence  and  sloth.  There  is  nothing  in  his 
eager  hopes  and  vivid  expectations  that  encour- 
ages and  charms  him.  He  lives  only  for  the 
present,  and  has  none  of  that  bright  impulse 
which  carries  him  forward  to  halcyon  days  to 
come.     In  this  respect  he  scarcely  differs  from  %j 

the  inferior  animals ;  but,   like   them,   is  envi-  M 

roned  with  a  dense  wall,  beyond  which  he  can 
catch  but  a  glimmering  light.     His  prospect  is 


PRAYER  AND   PAINS,  207 


% 


scarcely  brighter  or  wider  than  theirs.  The  ac- 
tual scenes  of  human  life  never  present  them- 
selves to  him  in  their  true  coloring,  but  are 
tinged  with  many  a  dark  and  melancholy  hue. 
That  absorbing  sentimentalism,  that  morbid  sen- 
sibility, which  is  so  often  the  bane  of  manly  and 
energetic  qualities,  lind  no  welcome  in  the  bo- 
som of  the  man  whose  high  aims  are  gratified  in 
the  prospect  of  responsible  exertion.  The  pri- 
meval paradise  was  not  sufficiently  fair  to  make 
its  inhabitants  happy  without  occupation.  Man 
could  not  be  deprived  of  a  greater  blessing  than 
useful  employment.  If  you  would  make  him 
miserable,  let  him  have  nothing  to  do.  The 
inoi'al  virtue  of  men  depends,  in  no  small  degree, 
upon  their  industry  and  enterprise.  Idleness  is 
the  nursery  of  crime.  It  is  that  bitter  and  pro- 
lific germ  of  which  all  rank  and  poisonous  vices 
are  the  fruits.  It  is  the  source  of  temptation. 
It  is  the  field  where  "  the  enemy  sows  tares 
while  men  sleep."  Could  we  trace  the  history 
of  a  large  class  of  vices,  we  should  find  that  they 
originate  in  the  want  of  employment,  and  are 
brought  in  to  supply  the  place  which  some  use- 
ful employment  would  otherwise  supply.  There 
are  others  which  take  their  rise  from  mere  re- 
luctance to  labor,  and  are  resorted  to,  because 
those  who  practise,  and  those  who  patronize 
them,  are  too  indolent  to  work.     Idleness  has 


208  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


slain  its  thousands.  It  is  the  corrupter  of  men 
and  nations.  It  corrupted  Sodom.  It  corrupted 
Nineveh.  It  corrupted  Babylon.  It  corrupted 
Greece  and  Rome.  The  greatest,  I  had  almost 
said  the  only  barrier  against  vice  is  the  Iiabit  of 
industry.  Industrious  habits  render  vice  un- 
necessary and  disagreeable,  and  prevent  the 
opportunity  of  indulgence.  An  industrious  man 
is  the  companion  of  industrious  men,  and  has 
neither  time  nor  temptation  to  be  vicious. 
There  is  no  other  possible  way  of  preventing 
and  restraining  vice  in  our  families,  in  our  com- 
munity, in  our  land,  in  our  young  men,  and  in 
all  ranks  and  orders  of  human  society,  than  by 
promoting  industry.  Few  men  know  how  to 
make  the  most  of  human  life.  Time  is  the  most 
valuable  of  all  the  talents  entrusted  to  them. 
It  is  of  more  importance  to  improve  human  life, 
than  to  extend  it  unimproved ;  to  live  well  than 
to  live  long.  No  man  can  promise  himself 
twenty  years ;  yet  may  he  live  twenty  in  ten. 

Nor  are  these  unchristian  thoughts,  nor  be- 
yond the  instructions  of  the  Bible,  or  in  any  way 
removed  from  the  legitimate  sphere  of  its  influ- 
ence. "  In  the  sweat  of  thy  face,  shalt  thou  eat 
thy  bread  until  thou  return  to  the  ground." 
"  Seest  thou  a  man  diligent  in  his  business;  he 
shall  stand  before  kings ;  he  sliall  not  stand 
before  mean  men."     "  The  hand  of  the  diligent 


m 


PRAYER  AND   PAINS.  209 


h 


maketh  rich,"  and  "  shall  bear  rule."  "  Be 
thou  diligent  to  know  the  state  of  thy  flocks 
and  thy  herds."  "  Diligent  in  business,  fervent 
in  spirit,  serving  the  Lord."  "  Six  days  shalt 
thou  labor,  and  do  all  thy  work."  While, 
therefore,  in  all  their  industry,  men  must  de- 
pend on  the  blessing  of  God,  they  may  not  ex- 
pect his  blessing  except  upon  their  industry. 
The  Scriptures  nowhere  countenance  an  inac- 
tive reliance  upon  God,  save  where  the  oppor- 
tunity and  power  of  action  are  taken  away. 
Men  do  not  live  by  miracles.  They  have  no 
warrant  to  throw  themselves  upon  divine  provi- 
dence without  any  efforts  of  their  own,  until 
God  constrains  them  so  to  do.  They  should  be 
slow  to  believe  that  such  necessity  exists;  nor 
until  it  does  exist  may  they  cast  themselves 
upon  God  without  concern,  and  feel  that  they 
themselves  have  no  active  responsibility. 

Another  of  the  means,  without  which  we 
may  look  in  vain  for  temporal  good  to  God  as 
the  giver,  is  economij.  It  is  scarcely  less  a  perver- 
sion of  the  laws  of  divine  providence,  to  rely  on 
that  providence  for  our  daily  bread  in  the  di.suse 
of  the  powers  and  faculties  which  God  has  given 
us,  than  in  the  perversion  and  abuse  of  the  boun- 
ties he  bestows.  I  know  not  how  a  wasteful 
and  extravagant  man  can  ever,  with  good  con- 
science, repeat    the    Lord's   Prayer.     He   who 


210  THE  MERCY   SEAT, 


wastes  what  God  gives  him,  may  not  complain 
if  he  ceases  to  give. 

Nature  and  providence  are  constantly  read- 
ing us  this  lesson.  One  law  is  made  to  sub- 
serve a  thousand  purposes,  and  acts  every- 
where. Nothing  is  thrown  away  ;  nothing  lost ; 
nothing  but  accomplishes  its  appropriate  end. 
The  accuracy  of  the  divine  arrangements  is  as 
truly  wonderful  as  their  bounty.  In  all  that 
God  does  there  is  a  place  for  everything,  and 
everything  is  in  its  place  ;  nor  may  this  eco- 
nomical arrangement  be  disturbed  by  human 
recklessness,  or  even  human  thoughtlessness 
and  improvidence,  without  suffering.  This  is 
the  universal  law  of  nature.  Accurate  philo- 
sophical investigations  have  discovered  that 
every  substance  in  the  natural  world  that  does 
not  retain  its  original  form,  passes  into  some 
other  equally  important  in  its  place.  The  ves- 
sel of  water  which  is  converted  into  vapor  and 
steam,  is  again  condensed,  and  loses  not  a 
scruple  of  its  original  weight.  The  billet  of 
wood  that  is  consumed  in  the  fire,  or  the  trunk 
that  decays  in  the  forest,  gives  out  the  whole 
of  its  substance,  either  in  the  matter  it  depos- 
its, or  the  gases  it  emits.  There  is  no  example 
of  the  entire  destruction  of  anything  in  the  uni- 
verse. Changes  are  indeed  taking  place  in 
countless   variety ;    but    the    most   penetrating 


•  -^^^ 


PRAYER  AND   PAINS.  211 


observer  has   not  been  able   to   discover   that 
anything  has  been  absolutely  destroyed. 

If  then  such  is  the  wise  economy  in  the  king- 
dom of  nature  ;  if  the  most  worthless  mineral, 
or  the  meanest  vegetable,  when  decomposed,  is 
resolved  into  elements  which  immediately  en- 
ter into  new  combinations,  and  in  other  forms 
assist  in  carrying  on  the  designs  of  providence  ; 
surely  nothing  was  given  to  men  to  destroy. 
The  voice  of  this  frugal  arrangement  is,  that  no 
man  may  innocently  overlook  this  divine  consti- 
tution, and  either  slight  the  gifts  of  providence, 
or  profusely  scatter  them,  as  if  they  were  made 
only  to  be  thrown  away.  And  such  is  the  voice 
of  the  Bible.  *'  Godliness  is  profitable  to  the  life 
that  now  is."  It  gives  even  the  lowest  moral 
duty  a  place  in  its  system  of  instruction.  "  The 
disciple  is  not  above  his  Lord."  The  Saviour 
was  standing  in  the  midst  of  abundance  miracu- 
lously created  by  his  command,  and  he  chose 
this  opportunity  to  give  utterance  to  the  injunc- 
tion, "  Gather  up  the  fragments,  that  nothing  be 
lost."  He  did  not  deem  it  dishonorable  and 
mean  to  be  frugal ;  dishonor  and  meanness  are 
more  justly  chargeable  to  waste  and  prodigality. 
He  that  is  regardless  of  little  things,  will  be 
very  apt  to  be  careless  of  those  that  are  greater. 
The  foundation  of  wealth  is  laid  not  merely  in 
habits  of  industry,  but  in  habits  of  wise  and 


212  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


persevering  economy.  Property  is  not  usually 
acquired  by  a  few  bold,  successful  operations, 
but  by  a  slow  and  prudent,  though  always  ad- 
vancing process,  and  by  minute  and  careful  ac- 
cumulations. "  A  good  man,"  says  the  Psalm- 
ist, "  will  guide  his  affairs  with  discretion." 
Men  must  themselves  not  only  plant  and  water, 
but  watch  and  spare,  if  they  expect  God  to 
give  the  increase.  The  man  who  makes  the 
best  use  of  what  God  gives  him,  takes  care  of 
it  that  he  may  use  it  to  the  best  advantage. 
His  economy  becomes  the  welcome  handmaid  of 
his  benevolence  ;  and  though  he  may  sometimes 
complain  that  it  is  taxed  to  relieve  wants  occa- 
sioned by  the  extravagance  of  others,  he  spares 
that  he  may  give  ;  the  great  sources  of  his  char- 
ity are  found  in  his  retrenchments.  He  spares 
that  he  may  spend;  he  lives  not  for  the  luxury 
of  wasting. 

Nor  do  we  hesitate,  in  the  next  place,  to 
specify  among  the  means  of  temporal  prosperity, 
a  sacred  regard  to  the  Lord's  Day.  The  com- 
mand, "  Remember  the  Sabbath  day  to  keep  it 
holy,"  is  so  consonant  to  the  law  of  nature  and 
of  providence,  and  is  so  adapted  to  the  wants 
of  man  as  an  intellectual,  moral,  and  physical 
being,  that  he  who  trifles  with  it  usually  pays 
the  penalty  in  temporal  suffering.  To  rest 
from  secular  and  worldly  employment  one  sev- 


PRAYER  AND  PAINS.  213 


enth  part  of  every  week,  and  to  devote  this 
season  to  the  cultivation  of  personal,  domestic, 
and  public  piety,  has  been  found  by  experience 
to  exert  a  benign  effect  on  the  temporal  inter- 
ests of  men.  Health  of  body,  cheerfulness  and 
activity  of  mind,  cannot  be  long  enjoyed  with- 
out this  repose.  The  statistics  have  been  greatly 
accumulated  which  show  the  fearful  waste  of 
human  comfort  in  communities  and  employ- 
ments, where  there  is  no  such  suspension  from 
care  and  toil.  If  a  man  would  make  the  most 
of  human  life  for  this  world,  to  say  nothing  of 
the  world  to  come,  he  will  charge  himself  to  be 
a  conscientious  observer  of  this  consecrated 
day. 

A  little  reflection  will  show  even  the  most 
worldly  men,  that  the  appointment  of  such  a 
day  of  rest  is  founded  in  great  wisdom  and  good- 
ness, and  that  it  is  the  interest,  as  well  as  the 
duty  of  men,  to  preserve  it  inviolate.  If  you 
look  over  this  extended  metropolis,  and  mark 
the  history  of  those  whom  God  has  prospered 
in  the  world,  you  will  find  them,  for  the  most 
part,  among  men  who  were  early  educated  in 
communities  and  families  that  were  taught  to 
fear  the  Lord  of  the  Sabbath.  And  though 
many  of  them  may  not  at  heart  be  pious  men, 
yet  are  they  men  whose  consciences  and  con- 
duct are  controlled  by  strong  impressions  of  the 


m 


214  THE  MERCY  SEAT, 


sacredness  of  this  holy  day.  There  is  very  little 
hope  for  the  prosperity  of  a  young  man,  who 
tramples  upon  this  great  institution.  Had  I  the 
control  of  an  important  mercantile  establish- 
ment, or  a  responsible  pecuniary  institution,  I 
would  say  to  a  man  who  habitually  profanes 
the  Lord's  Day,  "  Sir,  we  do  not  want  you. 
There  is  something  rotten  in  the  character 
of  the  man  who  despises  the  Sabbath  day." 
The  parent  who  would  see  his  child  prosper 
may  not  fail  to  instil  into  his  mind  a  due  regard 
to  the  (fourth  commandment.  If  there  be  no 
other  lesson  of  business  which  he  teaches  him, 
let  him  teach  him  this.  Let  a  young  man  habit- 
ually remember  the  Sabbath  day  to  keep  it 
holy,  and  into  what  a  sphere  of  moral  influences 
is  he  at  once  thrown !  by  what  a  circumvalla- 
tion  is  he  surrounded,  that  separates  him  from  a 
multitude  of  causes  that  are  ruinous  to  his  tem- 
poral prosperity ! 

Another  of  the  means  of  worldly  good  is  a 
sacred  regard  to  truth.  Truth  between  man  and 
man,  is  the  only  solid  basis  of  human  inter- 
course. Without  it  there  can  be  no  coHfidence 
in  the  transactions  of  business;  no  order,  no 
happiness  in  human  society.  Men  scarcely 
know  the  value  it  gives  to  their  character  as 
men  of  the  world,  to  have  it  known  that  they 
speak  the  whole    truth  when   it   ought   to    be 


PRAYER  AND   PAINS.  215 


spoken ;  that  they  speak  it  fully  and  without 
concealment;  that  they  speak  it  freely  and 
without  fear ;  without  mincing  and  obscuring  it, 
and  without  sinister  and  selfish  ends,  and  im- 
partially. A  lying  tongue  is  fatal  to  all  hope  of 
advancement  in  this  world,  as  well  as  all  hope 
of  the  life  that  is  to  come.  It  is  in  vain  for  a 
man  to  say,  that  he  means  no  harm  when  he 
utters  that  which  is  false  ;  he  does  harm,  and 
probably  more  than  all  others,  to  himself.  Let 
him  once  imbibe  the  habit  of  uttering  that 
which  is  untrue,  and  he  will  find  that  the  dis- 
honor cleaves  to  him,  nor  can  the  stain  easily  be 
wiped  away.  There  is  not  one,  even  among 
those  who  love  him  best,  and  would  fain  con- 
tribute to  his  welfare,  who  does  not  esteem  and 
love  him  less,  and  less  confide  in  him  for  every 
instance  of  falsehood.  A  liar  has  no  confidence 
in  himself,  because  he  has  no  consciousness  of 
an  inward  principle  of  truth  and  integrity  in  his 
own  heart.  His  word  is  doubted  ;  he  is  a  sus- 
pected man  ;  he  has  lost  caste  ;  he  has  inflicted 
unspeakable  injury  on  himself;  and  if  his  daily 
bread  is  but  scantily  supplied,  the  fault  is  his 
own,  the  unkindness  his  own,  the  cruelty  his 
own.  The  thought  may  well  be  deeply  im- 
pressed, especially  on  the  minds  of  the  young, 
that  a  lying  tongue  throws  insurmountable  bar- 
riers in  the  way  of  their  temporal  prosperity. 


216  .  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


Love,  confidence,  and  honor,  or  detestation,  dis- 
trust and  disgrace,  will  follow  them,  as  they 
are,  or  are  not  observant  of  the  claims  of  truth. 
Every  unfounded  statement,  every  misstate- 
ment, every  evasive,  equivocating  statement, 
where  truth  is  called  for,  every  low  art  of  con- 
cealment and  dissimulation,  every  broken  prom- 
ise, serves  to  shut  up  the  avenue  to  advance- 
ment. While  on  the  other  hand,  truth,  pure 
truth  with  all  its  simplicity,  loveliness,  and 
transparency,  is  so  usually  attended  with  the 
other  great  moral  A^irtues,  that,  with  God's  bles- 
sing, it  is  the  sure  road  to  comfort,  usefulness 
and  distinction. 

Another  means  of  temporal  prosperity  is  that 
genuine  rectitude  and  integrity  of  character  luhich 
secure  honesty  in  our  dealings  with  one  another. 
Dishonesty  is  one  of  tiiose  deliberate  and  sober 
vices,  the  effects  of  which  cannot  often  be  sur- 
vived even  by  a  thorough  reformation.  Some- 
times it  is  the  result  of  inconsiderateness;  some- 
times of  passion ;  but  more  usually  it  is  a  calm 
and  premeditated  sin,  which,  if  it  does  not  al- 
ways indicate  an  advanced  stage  of  wickedness, 
indicates  a  mind  that  is  reckless  of  ultimate 
success  in  the  world.  A  single  act  of  indiscre- 
tion, in  this  sensitive  department  of  morals, 
is  very  apt  to  demoralize  the  mind  of  the  perpe- 
trator, and  lead    to  perpetuated  wrong.      "  He 


PRAYER  AND   PAINS.  217 


that  is  faithful  in  that  which  is  least,  is  faithful 
also  in  that  which  is  much ;  and  he  that  is  un- 
just in  the  least,  is  unjust  also  in  much."  Dis- 
honesty is  a  sin  too  destructive  to  the  well-being 
of  society,  not  to  be  ruinous  to  the  individual 
who  practises  it.  He  who  is  willing  to  be  poor 
rather  than  dishonest,  by  honesty  may  become 
rich. 

One  more  thought  deserves  consideration,  as 
connected  by  the  divine  appointment  with  tem- 
poral prosperity  :  it  is,  di  filial,  respectful,  and  du- 
tiful deportment  toward  parents.  "  Honor  thy 
father  and  thy  mother,  that  thy  days  may  be 
long  in  the  land  which  the  Lord  thy  God  giveth 
thee."  That  this  arrangement  was  not  exclu- 
sively applicable  to  the  Israelites,  is  evident 
from  the  fact,  that  the  Apostle  refers  to  it  as  the 
"  first  commandment  with  promise."  For  one  act 
of  dishonor  to  parents,  the  race  of  Ham  was 
doomed  to  subjection  and  servitude.  Where 
the  obligations  under  which  a  child  is  to  his  pa- 
rents are  disregarded,  there  is  little  reason  to 
confide  in  the  influence  of  any  of  those  moral 
principles  which  are  the  ordinary  pledge  of  suc- 
cess in  secular  pursuits.  There  are  few  more 
certain  proofs  of  a  fearfully  depraved  heart. 
This  is,  probably,  one  reason  why  a  duty  which 
has  no  proximate  relation  to  worldly  prosperity, 
is  prescribed  as  one  of  the  conditions  of  it.     But 

10 


218  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


however  this  may  be,  it  is  one  of  the  conditions 
which  God  himself  has  established,  and  which 
none  will  disregard  who  hope  to  prosper. 
Youthful  indiscretions  his  providence  may  over- 
look ;  but  where  this  undutiful  spirit  and  deport- 
ment are  persevered  in,  even  though  repented 
of  in  after  life,  they  are  very  apt  to  carry  along 
with  them  the  forfeiture  of  the  promise  contain- 
ed in  the  fifth  commandment.  There  stands  the 
dreadful  and  unrepealed,  though  figurative  de- 
claration, "  The  eye  that  mocketh  at  his  father, 
and  that  refuseth  to  obey  his  mother,  the  ravens 
of  the  valley  shall  pick  it  out,  and  the  young 
eagles  shall  eat  it." 

Such  are  the  ordinary  means  of  procuring  tem- 
poral blessings.  Where  these  are  faithfully 
adopted  and  pursued,  men  may  consistently 
pray,  "  Give  us  this  day  our  daily  bread !" 
Where,  in  defiance  of  these,  they  are  poor,  God 
will  take  care  of  them.  His  hand  may  be  upon 
them;  sickness,  infirmity,  age,  misfortune,  may 
invade  them ;  and  they  may  be  cut  off  from  aU 
other  resources,  except  his  immediate  care ;  and 
then  he  will  care  for  them.  They  are  then 
God's  poor;  and  though  manna  may  not  be 
rained  for  them  out  of  heaven,  nor  water  gush 
from  the  rock ;  though  their  lands  may  not  be 
like  Gideon's  fleece,  nor  their  supplies  furnished 
by  the  same  miraculous  Power  that  replenished 


PRAYER  AND  PAINS.  219 


the  widow's  cruise  of  oil  and  barrel  of  meal ;  the 
promise  shall  not  fail,  "  No  good  thing  will  He 
withhold  from  them  that  walk  uprightly." 

I  have  not  presented  the  preceding  thoughts, 
seemingly  upon  a  topic  of  purely  temporal  inte- 
rest, without  some  hesitation.  If  any  of  my 
readers  feel  that  they  have  too  much  to  do  with 
time,  and  not  enough  with  eternity ;  if  they  are 
repelled  by  them,  as  by  a  cold  and  heartless  mo- 
rality, and  as  "  savoring  not  the  things  that  be  of 
God,  but  the  things  that  be  of  men ;"  I  entreat 
them  to  guard  their  own  minds  against  all  such 
unhallowed  impressions.  Nothing  is  further  from 
the  heart  of  hini  who  pens  the  present  chapter, 
than  thus  to  justify  a  worldly  mind.  I  seem  to 
hear  a  voice,  as  if  from  heaven,  as  I  draw  to  a 
conclusion  these  secularizing  thoughts,  saying  to 
the  reader  and  the  writer,  "  Labor  not  for  the 
meat  that  perisheth,  but  for  that  which  endureth 
unto  everlasting  life."  If  God  and  nature  require 
care  for  earthly  things ;  if  they  may  have  a  place 
even  in  our  daily  prayers  at  the  throne  of  grace; 
what  is  not  required  for  the  things  that  are  hea- 
venly ?  Oh !  let  us  seek  the  bread  of  life ;  let 
us  strive  to  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God.  God 
has  done  much  to  provide  temporal  enjoyments ; 
but  to  provide  those  that  are  heavenly,  the  hea- 
vens themselves  have  bowed,  and  emptied  them- 


220  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


selves  of  their  choicest  treasure.  After  all  their 
industry  and  economy,  men  may  fail  of  attaining 
earthly  treasures ;  and  they  will  disappoint  them, 
if  attained.  Heavenly  treasures  are  unfading  and 
eternal. 


CHAPTER  X. 


THE   DOCTRINE   OF  FORGIVENESS. 


"M  /nrgicB  110  niir  Mb,  m  mt  /nrgiire  mx  M\mJ' 

To  overlook  our  wants  as  sinners  in  the  all- 
absorbing  solicitude  for  our  wants  as  creatures, 
were  as  though  the  sentenced  criminal  should 
be  mainly  anxious  for  the  conveniences  and 
comforts  of  his  dungeon,  while  he  neglects  to 
seek  pardon  from  the  Sovereign  to  whom  he  has 
been  recommended  for  mercy.  "  What  shall  it 
profit  a  man  to  gain  the  whole  world  and  lose 
his  own  soul ;  or  what  shall  a  man  give  in  ex- 
change for  his  soul  ?"  Of  how  little  avail  are 
all  the  luxuries  of  this  earthly  pilgrimage  com- 
pared with  a  pacified  conscience,  and  a  tranquil 
hope  of  pardon  !  God  is  the  hearer  of  prayer  to 
the  full  extent  in  which  the  suppliant  is  a  man 
'of  prayer.  The  request  that  he  would  "  give 
us  day  by  day  our  daily  bread,"  may  be  an- 
swered in  the  supply  of  every  temporal  want ; 
while  amid  all  the  bounty  and  munificence  of 


222  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


his  providence,  the  sins  of  nature  and  of  practice 
may  be  registered  against  us,  and  we  remain 
strangers  to  the  riches  of  that  grace  which  con- 
signs them  to  oblivion. 

Those  who  are  equal  sharers  in  the  enjoy- 
ments of  the  present  world,  are  also  equal  shar- 
ers in  the  common  nature  of  a  fallen  humanity. 
Amid  the  higher  distinctions  of  wealth  and 
the  lower  degradations  of  poverty,  neither  the 
children  of  opulence  nor  of  want  are  exempted 
from  that  sweeping  declaration,  "There  is  none 
righteous,  no  not  one."  When  they  come  into 
the  presence  of  that  Being  who  levels  all  dis- 
tinctions, the  rich  and  the  poor  meet  on  com- 
mon ground,  and  under  a  deep  sense  of  their 
necessities  as  sinners.  The  day  will  come  when 
they  will  no  longer  have  need  to  ask  for  their 
daily  bread.  Now  they  are  tenants  of  time,  and 
prisoners  of  hope.  They  have  wants,  and  may 
seek  supply  ;  they  have  sins,  and  may  crave  for- 
giveness. The  gracious  and  condescending  Sa- 
viour has  put  the  request  into  their  lips,  "  For- 
give us  our  debts!" 

The  lost  ccmdltion  of  men  as  sinners,  as  it  is  the 
melancholy  fact  which  makes  forgiveness  neces- 
sary, so  is  it  necessary  to  be  understood  in  order 
to  a  right  understanding  of  the  doctrme  of  par- 
don. All  that  men  are  and  have,  belongs  to 
God.     From  him  they  receive  their  existence; 


THE  DOCTRINE  OF   FORGIVENESS.  223 


for  all  things  they  are  dependent  on  him.  To 
question  his  claims  is  to  do  him  wrong;  to  re- 
sist them  is  rebellion.  Sin  is  the  act  of  robbing 
God.  Men  have  taken  from  him  that  which 
does  not  belong  to  them ;  they  are  his  debtors ; 
they  owe  him  ample  reparation  for  the  wrongs 
they  have  done,  and  are  in  debt  to  his  equal 
justice.  Every  sinner  is  an  infinite  debtor. 
God  is  under  no  obligation  to  him ;  he  is  under 
all  obligations  to  God.  "  Who  hath  first  given  to 
the  Lord,  and  it  shall  be  recompensed  to  him 
again ;  for  of  him,  and  through  him,  and  to  him 
are  all  things."  It  is  impossible  for  the  offender 
to  make  any  satisfaction  ;  he  has  nothing  to  pay  ; 
the  debt  must  be  freely  forgiven,  or  he  must 
meet  the  rightful  exactions  of  the  avenging 
penalty. 

Some  are  greater  sinners  than  others,  but  all 
are  debtors  to  God's  justice,  and  stand  in  need 
of  forgiveness.  "  If  thou,  Lord,  shouldest  mark 
iniquity,  O  Lord,  who  shall  stand  ?"  The  man 
does  not  live,  who  can  deny  the  charge  of  guilt 
which  a  righteous  God  records  against  him; 
who  can  excuse  or  palliate  it ;  who  can  make 
any  amends  for  it ;  who  can  escape,  or  resist,  or 
endure  his  wrath. 

"  By  one  man,"  says  Paul,  "  sin  entered  into 
the  world,  and  death  by  sin ;  and  so  deatli  pass- 
ed  upon   all    men,   for  that  all    have   sinned." 


224  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


*'  By  the  offence  of  one,  judgment  came  upon  all 
men  to  condemnation."  "  By  one  man's  dis- 
obedience, many  were  made  sinners."  "  In 
Adam,  all  die."  The  fact  may  not  be  denied, 
that  the  character  and  condition  of  the  race 
were  materially  affected  by  this  first  apostasy. 
The  ground  was  cursed,  on  account  of  it.  Man 
was  doomed,  in  all  following  ages,  to  toil  and 
sorrow;  woman  to  be  a  sufferer  and  the  race  mor- 
tal; and  everything  human  to  come  into  exist- 
ence under  the  frown  of  an  offended  God.  Just 
as  the  heir  is  ruined  by  the  father's  debt,  was 
the  posterity  of  Adam  brought  in  debt  to  divine 
justice  by  the  fault  of  their  common  parent. 
Just  as  the  citizens  of  a  state  are  ruined  by  one 
false  step  of  their  rulers,  or  of  the  legislators 
who  represent  them,  was  the  posterity  of  Adam 
ruined  by  their  divinely  appointed  representative. 
No  principle  is  more  radical  to  all  social  or- 
ganization than  this,  nor  is  there  any  one  that  is 
more  universally  recognized.  ]\Ien  are  respon- 
sible in  law  for  the  acts  of  their  legal  represen- 
tatives. A  false  step  in  the  conductors  of  a  cor- 
porate institution,  is  visited  upon  every  member 
of  the  body  corporate.  A  national  debt  descends 
from  generation  to  generation,  and  their  posteri- 
ty are  rightfully  bound  to  fulfil  the  obligations 
of  their  ancestors.  There  are  also  crimes  of 
such  enormity,  as  to  extend  their  legal  forfeiture 


THE   DOCTRINE  OF    FORGIVENESS.  225 


to  the  children  of  the  criminal,  and  cut  them  off 
from  honorable  titles  and  large  estate. 

If  we  look  around  us,  we  shall  see  individuals 
and  whole  classes  of  men,  acting  not  for  them- 
selves only,  but  for  others,  and  those  who  come 
after  them.  Their  acts  are  not  the  acts  of  others, 
any  more  than  the  act  of  Adam,  in  eating  the 
forbidden  fruit,  is  the  act  of  his  descendants; 
yet  are  others  legally  bound  by  them,  and  the 
effects  of  them  are  as  truly  theirs  as  if  they 
themselves  had  performed  them. 

The  posterity  of  Adam  did  not  appoint  him 
to  act  for  them ;  that  appointment  had  a  higher 
origin,  and  is  indicative  of  the  wisdom  and  good- 
ness of  its  divine  source.  If  the  wisdom  of  hu- 
man laws  may  not  be  impugned  for  such  ar- 
rangements; if  men  deem  it  essential  to  the 
interests  of  good  government  to  hold  one  portion 
of  society  responsible  for  the  conduct  of  another; 
why  may  not  God,  in  his  wisdom,  legislating  for 
all  men  and  all  ages  of  the  world,  thus  throw 
the  character  and  destiny  of  the  race  into  the 
hands  of  their  first  father  ?  The  ground  on 
which  men  adopt  this  arrangement,  is  the  com- 
mon good ;  the  best  interests  of  the  community 
require  it.  It  is  the  best  system  of  government; 
nor  would  it  be  possible  for  government  other- 
wise to  exert  an  extensively  prospective  influence. 
And  the  ground  on  which  God  adopts  it  is  the 

10* 


226  THE   MERCY  SEAT. 


same.  It  is  not  an  arbitrary  measure,  but  a 
most  wise  and  benevolent  one,  and  consults  his 
own  honor,  and  the  best  interests  of  his  extend- 
ed and  eternal  empire.  When  he  issued  the 
law  of  Paradise,  he  was  not  legislating  for  the 
locality  of  Eden,  nor  for  an  individual,  nor  for  a 
day  ;  but  for  the  earth  on  which  we  dwell,  for 
the  race  of  man,  and  in  all  the  successive  ages 
of  his  history.  So  far  from  finding  fault  with 
this  divine  arrangement,  it  is  no  easy  matter  to 
see  how  it  could  have  been  ditferent  from  what 
it  was,  and  have  been  either  so  equitable  or  so 
wise. 

Had  God  placed  every  successive  individual  of 
the  race  on  trial  for  himself,  what  a  world  were 
this  which  we  should  have  occupied  !  What 
numberless  solicitudes  would  have  gathered 
around  the  destiny  of  every  new-born  infant — 
nay,  wdiat  painful  uncertainty,  what  agony  inde- 
scribable till  the  question  were  decided  whether 
he  would  stand  or  fall  for  eternity.  And  if  he 
fell,  how  would  those  solicitudes  have  been  aug- 
mented in  view  of  the  problem,  whether  there 
were  or  w  ere  not  any  method  to  be  revealed  for 
his  recovery  !  How  much  more  wise,  how  much 
more  expressive  of  the  divine  goodness,  that  both 
these  questions  should  be  decided  in  the  person 
of  him  w'ho  was  "  the  figure  of  Him  that  was  to 
come ;"  and  by  whose  fall,  the  way  was  pre- 


THE   DOCTRINE  OP   FORGIVENESS,  227 


pared  for  the  revelation  and  introduction  of 
that  method  of  mercy  which  had  a  simultaneous 
and  prospective  relation  to  the  entire  race,  be- 
cause though  not  practically,  yet  in  the  eye  of 
law,  they  "  sinned  in  him  and  fell  with  him  in 
his  first  transgression."  It  is  easy  for  the  mind 
to  involve  itself  in  webs  of  perplexity  by  con- 
sidering the  fall  of  our  first  parent  as  an  isolated 
event  in  the  divine  government,  and  the  law 
of  Paradise  as  a  mere  local  statute ;  but  when 
we  regard  them  as  the  germ,  and  foreshadowing 
of  another  and  more  comprehensive  dispensa- 
tion, both  based  upon  the  same  principle  of  vi- 
carious responsibility,  short-sighted  and  fallen 
as  we  are,  we  may  see  enough  in  this  peculiar 
economy  not  to  silence  our  murmurings  only, 
but  to  secure  our  admiration. 

The  sin  of  their  first  parent,  therefore,  is  the 
first  debt  which  stands  charged  to  his  posterity. 
It  is  not  a  personal,  but  an  imputed  offence.  They 
did  not,  they  could  not  commit  it ;  because  it  was 
perpetrated  before  they  were  born  ;  yet  the  legal 
forfeiture  of  it  entails  to  them,  because  the  Sov- 
ereign Lawgiver  appointed  him  to  act  in  their 
place.  And  though  his  act  was  not  their  act, 
nor  can  they  repent  of  it,  because  they  did  not 
commit  it,  yet  are  they  all  ruined  by  it — made 
bankrupts  by  the  defalcations  of  their  first 
father. 


228  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


Unsevered  from  the  respor  sibility  of  this 
original  sin,  there  is  in  all  men  the  inheritance  of 
a  morally  corrupted  nature,  constituting  their  na- 
tive depravity.  All  agree  that  there  is  a  fearful 
and  tremendous  visitation  of  the  iniquity  of  the 
parent  upon  the  children,  call  it  by  what  name 
you  will.  Adam  "  begat  a  son  in  his  own  like- 
ness ;"  not  in  the  likeness  of  his  unfallen,  but 
his  fallen  nature.  There  is  not  merely  an  utter 
want  of  original  righteousness  in  every  new-born 
child  of  the  human  family  ;  there  are  tendencies 
to  evil  which  no  second  causes  can  control ;  evil 
desires  and  evil  dispositions  which  indicate  that 
the  mind  is  dead  in  sin.  There  are  no  instances 
of  exemption  from  them  by  virtue  of  any  natural 
tendency  to  what  is  right ;  and  to  whatever  ex- 
tent it  may  be  counteracted,  whether  by  provi- 
dential restraint,  or  by  gracious  influence,  that 
counteraction  is  always  in  opposition  to  the  nat- 
ural bias  of  the  mind.  The  history  of  man  in 
all  ages  shows  that  good  is  not  natural  to  the 
human  heart;  individual  consciousness  shows 
it.  The  mind  is  not  even  indifferent  to  good 
and  evil ;  its  predilections  are  in  favor  of  evil. 
No  child  needs  to  be  taught,  or  persuaded,  or 
coerced  to  what  is  wrong;  while  in  the  adop- 
tion and  imitation  of  what  is  right,  instruction, 
persuasion,  the  coercion  of  law,  the  authority  of 


THE   DOCTRINE   OF   FORGIVENESS.  229 


motives,  are  not  only  requisite,  but  defective  and 
inefficient. 

The  language  of  revelation  on  this  subject  is 
clear  and  decisive.  "  Who  can  bring  a  clean 
thing  out  of  an  unclean  ?"  "  Behold,  I  was 
shapen  in  iniquity,  and  in  sin  did  my  mother 
conceive  me!"  "The  wicked  are  estranged 
from  the  womb ;  they  go  astray  as  soon  as  they 
be  born,  speaking  lies."  "  The  imagination  of 
man's  heart  is  evil  from  his  youth."  "  Who 
were  by  nature  the  children  of  wrath  even  as 
others." 

However  the  mind  may  be  improved  by  moral 
culture,  this  is  its  wretched  condition  until  it  is 
"  born  not  of  blood,  nor  of  the  will  of  the  flesh, 
nor  of  the  will  of  man,  but  of  God."  Born  of 
man,  it  is  human,  and  because  human  it  is  im- 
pure and  sinful ;  "  that  which  is  born  of  the 
flesh,  is  flesh."  Born  of  God,  it  partakes  of 
another  nature,  a  nature  that  is  spiritual  and 
divine ;  for  "  that  which  is  born  of  the  Spirit  is 
spirit."  If  men  were  not  by  nature  totally 
sinful,  this  change  would  not  be  necessary. 
The  fountain  head  is  polluted,  and  the  streams 
are  impure.  There  is  no  moral  conformity  of 
soul  to  the  pure  image  of  its  Maker.  The  un- 
derstanding is  darkened ;  the  conscience  has 
become  a  perverted  and  erring  guide ;  the  heart 
is  corrupt ;  and  the  passions  are  like  a  stormy 


230  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


sea  whose  waters  cast  up  mire  and  dirt.  The 
thoughts  are  ungoverned  and  ungovernable ; 
the  imagination  vain  and  corrupt ;  the  memory 
reposes  with  gratified  complacency  on  scenes 
of  wickedness ;  the  whole  mind  is  alienated 
from  the  Author  of  its  being  and  the  true 
sources  of  permanent  and  virtuous  joy.  And, 
what  is  most  melancholy  proof  of  this  deep- 
seated  wickedness,  these  evil  propensities,  this 
antipathy  to  good  and  proneness  to  sin,  are 
never  entirely  eradicated  this  side  the  grave, 
even  in  the  best  of  men.  When  we  pray, 
"  Forgive  us  our  debts,"  we  acknowledge  that 
we  have  incurred  this  forfeiture.  There  is  a 
concession  in  this  request  that  we  have  no 
righteousness  inherent.  How  humbling,  how 
prostrating  the  consideration  that  we  are  thus 
vile  ! 

Inseparable  from  this  corrupt  nature,  there 
are  unnumbered  deeds  of  wickedness,  and  overt 
violations  of  the  divine  law,  by  which  men 
have  incurred  the  still  more  fearful  obligations 
to  punitive  justice.  We  have  but  to  read  its 
precepts  and  prohibitions  and  compare  our 
character  and  conduct  with  these  high  claims, 
in  order  to  be  convinced  that  the  amount  of  our 
forfeitures  is  such  as  to  throw  us  at  the  footstool 
of  mercy,  and  make  us  the  merest  beggars  for 
forgiving  grace.     Everywhere  men  have  other 


THE   DOCTRINE  OP   FORGIVENESS.  231 


gods  beside  the  living  and  true  God ;  they  set 
up  idols  in  their  hearts  even  where  they  do  not 
worship  gods  which  their  own  hands  have  made. 
They  take  the  name  of  God  in  vain ;  their  lips 
glow"  with  curses  and  imprecations  of  evil ;  they 
"  set  their  mouth  against  the  heavens,  and  their 
tongue  walketh  through  the  earth."  They  dis- 
honor that  holy  Day  which  God  has  ordained 
and  blessed ;  are  cold  and  lukew^arm  in  its  du- 
ties, and  neglect  them  for  their  own  pleasures. 
Parents  are  unmindful  of  their  duty  to  their 
children,  and  children  are  disrespectful  and  dis- 
obedient to  their  parents.  Rulers  are  tyrants, 
and  subjects  are  rebels  against  good  and  whole- 
some laws.  Indiiference,  anger,  hatred,  and 
envy,  in  all  the  forms  of  outward  unkindness 
and  malignity,  take  the  place  of  the  charity 
that  believeth  all  things,  hopeth  all  things, 
beareth  all  things,  and  never  faileth.  Wars 
and  fightings,  intemperance  and  impurity,  prod- 
igality and  idleness,  fraud  and  falsehood,  ava- 
rice, cruelty  and  ambition,  all  hold  a  wide  place 
in  the  character  and  conduct  of  men.  Added 
to  these  are  all  the  forms  of  ingratitude  ;  the 
various  shades  of  unbelief;  the  rejection  of  the 
great  salvation ;  the  resistance  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  and  the  abuse  of  the  divine  forbearance ; 
all  and  every  one  of  them  long  continued,  often 
repeated^  multiplied  as  the  stars  of  the  fi^rma- 


232  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


ment,  and  persisted  in  with  great  perseverance 
and  obduracy. 

If  every  sin  deserves  God's  wrath  and  curse^ 
sins  like  these  give  the  divine  justice  impera- 
tive and  resistless  claims  upon  their  perpetra- 
tors. They  are  righteously*  devoted  to  punish- 
ment. Sin  tends  to  usurp  God's  government ; 
he  only  knows  the  demerit  of  it ;  nor  does  he 
ever  mistake  in  appointing  the  punishment  to  the 
crime.  No  matter  how  low  a  man  may  set  the 
mark  of  transgression ;  every  sin,  even  the 
smallest,  involves  the  nature  and  essence  of  all 
other  sins.  It  is  a  world  of  sin  in  miniature,  and 
only  wants  time  and  opportunity  to  unfold  its 
dark  imagery. 

Nor  is  the  bond  that  connects  sin  with  pun- 
ishment a  doubtful  one  ;  it  is  inviolable,  and 
full  of  wrath.  The  sentence  is  past;  the  death- 
warrant  is  gone  forth  ;  and  if  there  be  no  for- 
giveness, the  transgressor  must  "  depart  ac- 
cursed into  everlasting  fire,  prepared  for  the 
devil  and  his  angels."  It  is  not  sovereignty 
that  punishes,  but  justice ;  a  justice,  which, 
while  it  never  inflicts  more  than  is  deserved, 
may  not  inflict  less.  It  is  not  revenge  that  pun- 
ishes, but  principle  ;  otherwise  it  might  change 
its  purpose.  It  is  not  malice,  for  then  it  might 
be  satiated  ;  it  is  pure,  unchanging  rectitude", 
which  may  not  be  satisfied  until  the  transgressor 


THE    DOCTRINE  OP   FORGIVENESS.  233 


receive  the  full  reward  of  his  deeds,  or  take 
refuge  in  some  accepted  atonement.  Not  only 
is  he  in  debt  to  justice,  but  his  arrears  are 
continually  augmented  and  augmenting.  And 
it  is  this  which  unfolds  to  us  the  momentous 
character  of  the  request,  ^'Forgive  us  our  debts." 
For  if  the  claim  is  enforced,  the  offender  has  no 
other  way  of  liquidating  it  than  by  sinking  un- 
der the  burden  in  that  world  where  the  worm 
does  not  die,  and  the  fire  is  not  quenched. 

Such  is  man's  need ;  and  it  suggests  substan- 
tially the  only  true  illustration  of  the  doctrine  of 
forgiveness.  God  is  willing  to  forgive;  he  is  dis- 
posed to  pardon,  from  the  infinite  benevolence 
of  his  nature.  Who  can  doubt  this,  that  knows 
"  that  he  is  good  and  does  good,  and  that  his 
tender  mercies  are  over  all  his  works  ?"  Who 
can  doubt  it,  wdio  has  heard  that  his  name  is 
"  Love  ?"  Yet  it  may  not  be  affirmed,  that  in 
his  mere  benevolence  we  have  any  assurance 
of  his  pardoning  mercy.  Goodness  may  punish; 
nay,  it  must  punish  the  ill-deserving.  A  good 
law  punishes;  a  good  judge  punishes;  and  the 
more  certainly  because  they  are  good.  How- 
ever inclined  to  forgive  the  divine  Lawgiver 
may  be,  and  however  strongly  moved  to  acts  of 
mercy  by  the  tenderness  of  his  own  kind  nature, 
justice  has  claims  as  well  as  clemency  and  com- 
passion.   And  what  shall  countervail  these  right- 


234  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


ful  demands  ?  Reason  cannot;  conscience  dare 
not.  The  whole  history  of  the  divine  govern- 
ment is  proof  that  sin  cannot  go  unpunished. 
The  nature  of  the  Deity  forbids  it;  because  he 
is  just  and  righteous,  as  well  as  good  and  kind. 
His  law  forbids  it,  and  stands  forth  a  pledge  to 
the  universe  that  it  knows  no  such  thing  as  im- 
punity for  crime.  It  is  essential  to  the  character 
of  God  as  Lawgiver,  that  wherever  the  claims 
of  his  law  are  violated,  his  authority  be  enforced 
by  the  infliction  of  its  penalty;  otherwise  it  is  no 
longer  law,  and  he  no  longer  Lawgiver. 

The  inquiry  recurs,  therefore,  with  redoubled 
emphasis,  Is  there  forgiveness  with  God?  Is 
there  any  such  method  of  mercy  as  does  not 
overlook,  but  satisfies  and  honors  the  demands 
of  justice  ?  Is  it  possible  to  indemnify  justice, 
and  yet  pardon  the  transgressor?  The  problem 
is  a  dark  and  difficult  one ;  yet,  glory  to  God  in 
the  highest,  there  is  a  solution  of  it.  It  is  possi- 
sihle.  There  is  peace  on  earth,  and  good-will  to 
men,  in  the  glorious  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ. 
The  adorable  God,  in  his  unsearchable  wisdom, 
had  discovered  that  the  infliction  of  the  punish- 
ment upon  a  competent  substitute  is,  in  his  gra- 
cious method  of  reckoning,  an  equivalent  to 
the  curse  due  to  transgressors.  As  such,  it  is 
accepted  by  justice  in  full  satisfaction  of  all  her 
demands;  so  that  the  repentant  and  believing 


THE  DOCTRINE  OF   FORGIVENESS.  235 


transo-ressor  is  in  this  way  restored  to  the  divine 
favor,  and  pardoned  through  this  vicarious  sac- 
rifice. 

The  selected  system  of  representation,  com- 
menced under  the  first  Adam,  is  thus  completed 
under  the  second,  the  Lord  from  heaven.  The 
eternal  Son,  in  human  nature,  "  the  just  for  the 
unjust,"  is  "set  forth  a  propitiation,  through 
faith  in  his  blood."  On  the  revealed  and  simple 
condition  of  receiving  him  as  their  Saviour  and 
Lord,  his  death  avails  for  the  pardon  of  sin. 
This  is  God's  method  of  pardon.  Because  the 
wondrous  provision  for  its  payment  originated 
with  the  clemency  of  the  divine  Creditor,  and 
flowed  from  his  own  exhaustless  treasury,  the 
debt  is  very  properly  said  to  be  forgiven.  To 
us  it  is  gratuitous;  to  him  it  was  costly.  To  us 
it  is  grace ;  to  him  it  was  justice.  To  us  it  is 
gift ;  to  him  it  was  ransom — a  gift  purchased  by 
his  own  blood.  The  procuring  cause  of  it  is  found, 
not  in  the  sinner,  not  in  what  he  has  done,  or  can 
perform,  but  in  what  has  been  done  and  suffered 
by  another. 

So  far  as  it  respects  the  divine  law,  and  the 
wrath  of  God  as  its  great  guardian  and  pro- 
tector, the  forgiveness  of  the  offender  is  com- 
plete from  the  moment  he  repents  and  believes 
the  Gospel.  "■  Being  justified  by  faith,  we  have 
peace    with    God,    through    our    Lord    Jesus 


236  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


Christ ;""  there  is,  .therefore,  now  no  condem- 
nation to  them  which  are  in  Christ  Jesus.''  But 
it  is  not  a  forgiveness  that  frees  him  from  the 
temporary  chastisements  of  paternal  discipline, 
nor  from  many  a  frown  of  his  angry  Father.  He 
is  not  exempted  from  these  even  by  the  law  of 
grace.  "  If  his  children  forsake  my  law,  and 
walk  not  in  my  judgments ;  if  they  break  my 
statutes,  and  keep  not  my  commandments ;  then 
wall  I  visit  their  iniquity  with  the  rod,  and  their 
transgression  with  stripes," 

Nor  yet  is  it  a  forgiveness  of  w^hich  the  believ- 
er is  always  conscious.  The  Mary  that  washed 
the  Saviour's  feet  with  her  tears,  was  pardoned 
before  her  pardon  was  declared ;  she  did  not 
know  it  until  it  was  said  to  her,  "  Woman,  thy 
sins  are  forgiven  thee  ;  go  in  peace  !'^  Pardon  does 
not  necessarily  imply  the  assurance  of  pardon.  A 
pardoned"  sinner  may  labor  under  doubts  and 
fears ;  and  because  his  faith  is  weak,  he  may  not 
have  the  sense  of  pardon,  and  the  comfortable 
intimation  of  it  to  his  own  soul.  And  this,  in  ad- 
dition to  his  daily  sins,  is  a  reason  why  he  daily 
prays  for  pardoning  mercy.  He  would  have  the 
evidence  of  pardon,  the  pledge,  the  healing 
power  of  atoning  blood. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark,  that  in  this  prayer,  the 
Saviour  says  nothing  of  the  ground  of  pardon,  or 
of  asking  forgiveness  in  his  name.     Socinians 


THE   DOCTRINE   OF   FORGIVENESS.  237 


and  Unitarians  have  not  been  backward  in  mak- 
ing use  of  this  circumstance  as  indicating  that 
there  is  pardon  for  the  sinner  without  any  atone- 
ment for  his  sins.  Yet  is  there  a  concession  in 
the  petition  itself,  not  only  that  we  have  no 
merit  of  our  own,  but  that  of  ourselves  we 
cannot  procure  it ;  we  are  sinners  and  have 
nothing  of  our  own  to  plead.  The  Socinian  the- 
ory must  contradict  one  part  or  other  of  God's 
w^ord;  either  the  representations  of  his  grace, 
or  his  righteousness.  With  this  system,  Chris- 
tianity has  not  one  principle  of  faith  or  hope 
in  common ;  it  has  neither  part  nor  lot  with 
them.  It  was  of  right  that  God  exacted  the 
penalty  of  his  law ;  of  grace  that  he  provi- 
ded a  substitute.  To  Christ  the  pardon  of  his 
people  is  a  debt ;  he  can  claim  it  as  the  stipu- 
lated compensajtion  for  his  obedience  to  the 
death  of  the  cross.  To  them  it  is  a  debt  forgiven, 
cancelled  ;  it  is  pure  grace.  In  this  petition  we 
cast  ourselves  upon  the  mercy  of  God  in  Christ. 
In  no  one  instance  in  all  God's  word  is  there 
any  promise  of  forgiveness,  either  in  princi- 
ple, or  fact,  except  for  Christ's  sake.  The 
Saviour  at  the  time  he  taught  them  this  prayer, 
left  his  disciples  with  the  previous  teachings, 
mainly  of  the  Old  Testament.  The  time  had 
not  come  for  clearer  and  more  explicit  instruc- 
tions.    It  was  subsequent  to  giving  them  this 


238  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


model  of  supplication,  that  he  said,  "  Hitherto 
ye  have  asked  nothing  in  my  name."  They 
had  never  yet  come  into  the  divine  presence 
upon  the  merit  of  that  Sacrifice  actually  offered, 
the  blood  of  that  Atonement  actually  shed,  and 
already  fresh  and  flowing  on  the  altar  of  justice. 
This  is  our  privilege;  but  it  was  not  then  theirs. 
To  us  the  veil  of  the  temple  has  been  rent  in 
tw^ain  from  the  top  to  the  bottom.  Our  access 
is  indicated  by  the  soldier's  spear,  when  it  rent 
the  divine  humanity  and  perforated  the  heart  of 
God's  only  son.  We  come,  not  with  the  blood 
of  bulls  and  of  goats,  but  with  the  blood  of  his 
great  sacrifice,  which  never  loses  its  efficacy, 
which  is  always  as  it  were  newly  shed,  assuring 
us  that  ^ve  ask  not  in  vain,  when  we  pray,  "  For- 
give us  our  debts  as  we  forgive  our  debtors  !" 


CHAPTER  XI. 


PRAYER  FOR  FORGIVENESS. 


"/nrgiE  n  Htit  Mb,  m  mt  /nrgiut  nnr  Dtlitnrs." 

Such  is  the  doctrine  of  forgiveness ;  and  it 
lays  the  foundation  for  prayer  for  forgiveness. 
When  a  guilty  sinner  addresses  himself  to  the 
God  of  pardons,  with  the  language  on  his  lips, 
"  Forgive  us  our  debts,  as  we  forgive  our  debt- 
ors," the  matter  for  prayer  is  to  be  found  in  the 
instructions  of  God's  word  in  regard  to  the  prin- 
ciple, the  encouragement,  and  great  object  of 
this  request.  If  men  are  the  sinful  and  ill-de- 
serving creatures  which  the  word  of  God  repre- 
sents them  to  be  ;  if  Jesus  Christ  condescended 
to  lay  down  his  life  as  a  sacrifice  for  their  sins ; 
and  if  for  his  sake  God  is  the  God  of  pardons ; 
these  are  good  reasons  why  they  should  repair 
to  the  throne  of  grace,  that  the  effects  of  this 
sacrifice  may  be  applied,  and  thus  may  in  all 
its  healing  powers  be  conveyed  to  their  own  bo- 
soms.    These  great  truths  are  not  only  a  suffi- 


240  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


cient  warrant  for  the  request,  but  also  intimate 
the  manner  and  spirit  in  which  it  should  be 
offered. 

The  most  superficial  view  of  the  nature  and 
objects  of  prayer  cannot  fail  to  teach  us  that 
such  a  request  as  this  should  be  offered  with 
great  seriousness  of  mind.  We  would  not  go  into 
the  presence  of  an  earthly  prince,  even  though 
it  were  to  solicit  an  ordinary  favor,  without  fore- 
thought and  preparation ;  much  less  would  we 
come  as  culprits  to  his  throne  to  beg  the  inter- 
position of  royal  prerogative  in  the  exercise  of 
the  pardoning  power,  without  respect  and  rev- 
erence. In  prayer,  we  go  into  the  presence  of 
our  Maker,  to  soli(:it  audience  of  Him  whose 
word  spake  worlds  into  existence,  and  before 
whom  "  all  nations  are  as  nothing,  and  are 
counted  to  him  less  than  nothing  and  vanity." 
We  go  to  entreat  him  to  condescend  to  hear 
and  pardon  a  human  rebel ;  to  plead  at  the 
throne  of  the  "  King  eternal,  immortal,  and  in- 
visible," for  the  deliverance  of  the  soul  that  will 
never  die,  from  chains  of  darkness  and  vials  of 
wrath.  It  is  no  trifling  matter  to  hold  commu- 
nion with  the  God  of  heaven  on  such  an  errand 
as  this.  He  is  mighty  to  save  and  to  destroy. 
If  before  him  angels  bow  and  devils  tremble,  no 
sinner  may  take  his  name  upon  his  lips,  without 
feeling  that  it  is  a  word  of  solemn,  of  awful,  of 


PRAYER   FOR  FORGIVENESS.  241 


gracious  import.  If  ever  the  soul  ought  to  com- 
mand itself  into  veneration  and  awe,  it  is  when 
she  comes  to  cast  herself  upon  the  riiercy  of 
God  in  Christ,  for  the  pardon  of  sin.  To  go  in 
a  careless,  unprepared  manner,  with  trifling  and 
disrespect,  or  without  great  consideration  and 
seriousness,  or  without  unaffected  tenderness  of 
conscience  and  heart,  were  to  offer  the  prayer 
that  is  emphatically  an  abomination.  Such  re- 
quests are  worse  than  "  vain  oblations ;"  they 
are  gross  insult,  insolence  not  to  be  endured, 
were  not  the  divine  patience  lengthened  out 
even  to  long-suffering. 

There  is  also  an  honesty  of  intention,  a  simpli- 
city and  godly  sincerity  in  the  man  Vvho  offers 
this  request,  without  which  he  may  not  hope  to 
find  access.  A  cold,  formal,  listless  mind  when 
the  transgressor  pleads  for  mercy,  is  in  ill  keep- 
ing with  the  object  of  his  prayer.  It  is  a  guilty 
and  sinful  worm  who  has  sinned  against  heaven 
and  before  God,  and  is  no  more  worthy  to  be 
called  his  servant,  much  less  to  be  accounted 
his  child,  who  sues  for  mercy  from  the  dread 
Lord  of  heaven  and  earth,  and  the  compassion- 
ate Father  of  all  mercies.  Surely,  if  the  heart 
ought  ever  to  respond  to  every  sentence  the  lips 
utter,  it  is  when  he  is  thus  employed.  Such  a 
suppliant  may  w^ell  fill  his  mouth  with  argu- 
ments, and  urge  his  request  by  all  those  consid- 
11 


242  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


erations  which  a  reflecting  mind  and  a  burdened 
conscience  can  draw  from  the  fountains  of  God's 
truth  and  the  riches  of  his  grace.  He  will  not 
satisfy  himself  with  the  words  of  prayer,  but 
from  a  burdened  heart  W'ill  say,  "  I  am  poor  and 
needy ;  O  God,  help  me  !  Thou  art  my  helper 
and  my  deliverer;  make  no  tarrying,  O  my 
God  !"  The  soul  itself  is  at  such  seasons 
brought  near  to  Him  who  is  a  Spirit  and  must 
be  worshipped  in  spirit  and  in  truth. 

There  is  earnestness  in  the  man,  who,  touched 
with  his  lost  condition  as  a  sinner,  comes  in 
sober  verity  to  the  foot  of  the  throne,  to  crave 
pardon  from  a  forgiving  God,  that  bespeaks  the 
struggles  that  are  within.  "  Out  of  the  depths," 
says  the  agonizing  Psalmist,  "  have  I  cried  unto 
thee,  O  Lord.  Lord  hear  my  voice;  let  thine 
ears  be  attentive  to  the  voice  of  my  supplica- 
tions !"  The  horror  of  the  deserved  curse  is 
that  which  he  deprecates;  and  if  he  prays  as 
he  ought,  a  dying  man  cannot  be  more  sincere 
and  in  earnest.  "  Have  mercy  upon  me,  O 
God,  according  to  thy  loving  kindness  ;  accord- 
ing to  the  multitude  of  thy  tender  mercies  blot 
out  my  transgressions  !"  Yes,  there  is  honesty, 
there  is  interest,  there  is  awakened  attention 
and  steady  thought,  there  is  eagerness  of  desire, 
that  not  unfrequently  express  themselves  in 
"  strong  crying  and  many  tears,"  when  lips  of 


PRAYER  FOR   FORGIVENESS.  243 


clay  plead  for  mercy  from  the  God  of  mercy. 
Many  a  deep  emotion  agitates  the  bosom  then. 
To  be  in  an  unforgiven  state,  is  to  be  in  a  fear- 
ful state.  Wo  to  the  man  whose  thoughts  were 
never  engrossed  by  this  great  concern !  and  to 
whom  pardon  and  peace,  through  the  blood  of 
Jesus,  do  not  appear  more  important  realities 
than  all  the  phantoms  ever  crowded  within  the 
compass  of  this  perishing  world  ! 

To  be  offered  either  in  seriousness  or  in  sin- 
cerity, this  request  must  also  be  offered  m  peni- 
tence. Arrested  attention  and  awakened  sensi- 
bility, earnestness  and  agony  in  prayer,  may  not 
always  be  the  sure  and  unfailing  indices  of  a 
broken  and  contrite  heart.  Thousands  have  no 
doubt  cried  for  mercy,  amid  the  convulsive  ago- 
nies of  death,  who  died  in  impenitence  and 
despair.  A  man  may  tremble  under  the  rebukes 
of  a  terrified  conscience  ;  he  may  weep  and  turn 
pale  at  the  fear  of  hell,  without  shedding  one 
tear  of  contrition,  without  one  pang  of  godly 
sorrow. 

Penitence  implies  a  sense  of  sin,  mourning  on 
account  of  it,  hatred  of  it,  and  turning  from  it 
unto  God.  The  Gospel  is  no  "  glad  tidings  of 
great  joy"  to  those  who  do  not  feel  their  need 
of  pardon.  Pardon  and  a  sense  of  sin  that  is 
humbling  to  the  soul,  stand  indissolubly  coupled 
in  the  Scriptures.     There  is  something  absurd 


244  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


in  the  idea,  that  an  obdurate  and  impenitent 
mind  ever  truly,  and  in  the  Scriptural  use  of  the 
word,  pray  for  fbrgiveness.  There  is  no  such 
thing  as  an  impenitent  prayer  for  God's  mercy. 
There  may  be  the  words,  the  agony,  the  "  ex- 
ceeding great  and  bitter  cry"  of  Esau;  but 
there  is  no  'prayer.  It  were  an  insult  to  the  God 
of  heaven  for  a  man  to  pray  for  pardon,  and  yet 
continue  to  w  alk  in  the  ways  of  sin  and  perdition. 
Such  a  petition  would  be  implicitly  asking  God 
to  deny  himself.  Men  may  regret  that  they  are 
sinners,  because  they  are  afraid  of  the  recom- 
pense of  their  wickedness ;  but  this  is  sorrow  for 
the  consequences  of  sin.  It  is  the  sorrow  of 
Ahab  and  of  Judas ;  not  the  sorrow  of  David  and 
Peter.  It  is  the  "  sorrow  of  the  world,  that 
worketh  death."  It  is  such  a  sorrow  as  the 
devils  have,  who  still  love  sin.  There  is  no 
greater  penitentiary  in  the  universe  than  hell  it- 
self; yet  is  there  no  godly  sorrow  there,  A 
sense  of  sin  consists  not  in  a  bare  rational  specu- 
lation, or  intellectual  perception  of  the  nature 
of  sin,  nor  in  the  bitterness  of  grief  for  its  conse- 
quences, but  in  the  honest  feeling  of  its  base- 
ness, a  feeling  of  its  base  and  hateful  evil,  and 
not  an  evil  in  its  consequences  only.  Nor  is  it  an 
abstract  view,  but  a  sense  of  our  own  wicked- 
ness, that  becomes  us  when  we  approach  Him, 
who  is  "  of  purer  eyes  than  to  behold  iniquity." 


PRAYER  FOR   FORGIVENESS.  245 


Nor  may  the  truth  be  overlooked,  that  external 
acts  are  but  a  small  part  of  that  over  which  the 
penitent  weeps.  He  is  humbled  on  account  of  the 
sins  of  his  heart,  as  well  as  the  sins  of  his  life. 
Deep  humiliation  of  soul  for  his  past  offences,  and 
for  the  present  and  internal  power  of  sin  are  insep- 
arable from  his  every  prayer  for  pardoning  mercy. 

There  can  be  no  pardon  granted  where  this 
spirit  is  not  in  exercfse.  "He  that  exalteth 
himself,  shall  be  abased  ;  and  he  that  humbleth 
himself,  shall  be  exalted."  "  He  that  covereth 
his  sins,  shall  not  prosper;  but  he  that  confess- 
eth  and  forsaketh  them,  shall  find  mercy."  It 
is  not  befitting  the  great  and  holy  God,  even  for 
the  sake  of  his  Son,  to  grant  pardon  to  a  man 
who  has  no  true  relentings  of  soul  for  his 
offences.  This  w^ould  be  to  make  his  Son  "  the 
minister  of  sin."  Men  would  sin,  that  his  grace 
might  abound.  The  dispensing  power  of  his  gov- 
ernment does  not  extend  acts  of  pardon  to 
such  a  man ;  nor  has  any  man  a  right  to  ask  for 
them,  on  any  such  terms. 

Reason,  and  conscience,  and  common  sense, 
all  confirm  these  teachings  of  the  Bible.  They 
teach  us  that  there  is  a  spirit  of  self-abasement, 
which  is  founded  on  a  sense  of  personal  sinful- 
ness, and  which  throws  the  sinner  at  the  feet  of 
mercy.  And  all  the  experience  of  godly  men 
does  but  establish  these  wholesome  teachings. 


246  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


They  "  look  on  Him  whom  they  have  pierced, 
and  mourn ;"  they  are  "  ashamed  and  confound- 
ed, and  know  not  how  to  lift  up  their  faces  any 
more."  They  have  such  a  humiliating  convic- 
tion of  their  defilement  as  urges  them  to  cry, 
*'  Unclean,  unclean!"  and  such  a  sorrowful  sense 
of  their  guilt  and  unworthiness,  as  constrains 
them  to  cry  out,  "  Behold,  I  am  vile  ;  what  shall 
I  answer  thee  ?"  * 

It  is  not  an  inappropriate  employment  of  the 
soul,  before  she  goes  thus  to  the  mercy  seat,  to 
call  herself  to  an  account,  and  look  into  the  sins 
whereby  she  has  offended  God.  The  most  hon- 
est and  enlightened  are  in  the  dark  as  to  the 
number  and  magnitude  of  their  offences,  and 
have  reason  to  say  with  the  Patriarch,  "  Make 
me  to  know  my  transgressions  and  my  sins ;" 
and  to  acknowledge  and  pray  with  the  Psalmist, 
"  Who  can  understand  his  errors  ?  Cleanse 
thou  me  from  secret  faults !"  The  life  of  the 
honest  suppliant  is  a  life  of  habitual  penitence  ; 
but  nowhere  does  he  exercise  so  true,  so  godly, 
and  so  deep  a  sorrow,  as  when  he  comes  near 
to  a  forgiving  God,  and  contemplates  both  his 
majesty  and  mercy.  There  at  the  throne  of 
grace,  his  heart  breaks ;  at  those  fountains  of 
mercy,  his  tears  flow.  Clad  with  deformity, 
covered  with  filthiness,  defiled  with  the  abomi- 
nations of  sin  that  drawls  after   it   everlasting 


PRAYER  FOR  FORGIVENESS.  247 


unworthiness  and  ill-desert,  he  asks  to  be 
washed  and  made  clean. 

There  may  be  those  who  know  nothing  of 
these  impressions ;  there  may  be  those  who 
scoff  at  them ;  but  they  are  far  from  the  king- 
dom of  God.  Wo  to  the  man  whose  sense  of 
sin  never  disturbs  his  tranquillity;  never  puts  a 
check  on  his  worldly  amusements  and  gay  di- 
versions ;  never  drives  him  to  his  knees  to  say, 
"  God  be  merciful  to  me,  a  sinner  !" 

It  is  no  small  matter  to  know  how  to  find  the 
way  to  the  throne  of  grace  with  the  prayer  for 
forgiveness  upon  our  lips.  The  man  who  has  not 
felt  this  difficulty  has  yet  to  learn  that  he  is  a 
sinner.  If,  as  we  have  already  seen,  all  our  de- 
votions of  whatever  kind,  must  be  offered  to 
God  in  Christ's  name,  and  he  himself  is  the  al- 
tar on  which  every  acceptable  offering  is  laid ; 
there  is  still  a  stronger  propriety  in  the  appoint- 
ment that  our  supplications  for  pardon  be  offered 
in  his  name,  because  it  is  only  by  redemption 
through  his  blood,  and  forgiveness  of  sin  through 
the  riches  of  his  grace,  that  such  a  request 
could  ever  have  been  thought  of  Oilier  mer- 
cies flow  through  the  blood  of  Christ ;  but  they 
flow  indirectly,  and  as  the  consequence  of  his 
Propitiation ;  wiiile  the  remission  of  the  pen- 
alty of  the  law  for  sin  is  the  immediate  and  di- 
rect object  of  his  death,  and  that  which  made 


2^  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


it  necessary.  The  appropriate  work  of  Christ 
is  to  take  away  sin,  and  by  his  bitter  passion 
and  ignominious  death  to  dissolve  the  bondage 
of  its  curse.  True  penitence  has  a  living  ap- 
prehension of  the  Lord  Jesus  as  the  mediatoi 
and  the  procurer  of  pardon  ;  it  takes  hold  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  as  the  divine  and  mighty  sufferer  ;  it 
pleads  his  agony  and  bloody  sweat,  his  scoffs  and 
ignominy,  his  thirst  and  abandonment,  his  crown 
of  thorns,  his  shame  and  spitting,  his  bitter 
cry  and  his  bloody  cross.  Here  it  rests  its  plea. 
"  It  is  Christ  that  died."  This  is  the  sacrifice 
which  the  law  honors  and  with  which  justice  is 
satisfiel.  O  it  is  an  inexpressible  relief  to  the 
soul  burdened  with  sin,  and  bowing  to  the  jus- 
tice of  the  sentence  that  condemns  it,  to  have 
the  confidence  that  in  extending  pardon  to  the 
guilty  there  is  no  sacrifice  of  righteousness. 
This  great  atonement  he  does,  as  it  were,  carry 
with  him  to  the  Mercy  Seat.  He  offers  what 
divine  justice  requires  ;  and  only  wonders  that 
infinite  love  should  have  stooped  so  low  as  to 
provide  itself  the  sacrifice,  and  permit  him  to 
offer  another's  life  instead  of  his  own. 

The  faith  of  prayer  is  Hhe  prayer  of  faith. 
Faith  is  reliance  upon  testimony,  and  is  founded 
on  the  veracity  of  the  witness.  "  This  is  the 
testimony  of  God  that  he  hath  given  us  eternal 
life,  and  this  life  is  in  his  Son."     And  it  is  "  of 


PRAYER  FOR  FORGIVENESS,  249 


the  operation  of  God."  There  is  no  natural 
principle  in  the  carnal  mind  that  can  produce  it. 
It  is  "  given"  to  the  suppliant  "  in  the  behalf  of 
Christ,  to  believe  in  his  name."  Sin  is  a  con- 
tinual and  unmingled  lie,  and  has  no  affinity  to 
God's  truth.  The  faith  which  the  sinner  exer- 
cises in  prayer  honors  the  truth  of  God,  and  in 
that  truth  finds  a  sufficient  warrant  to  deposit 
all  his  solicitude  and  all  his  burden  on  the  Lamb 
of  God.  He  has  confidence  in  his  atoning 
blood.  Even  under  his  greatest  doubts  and 
distress,  he  will  not  quit  his  hold  on  the  God- 
man  Mediator,  nor  discard  his  faith.  Lord, 
none  but  Thee  ;  none  but  Thee  ! 

It  is  a  delightful  thought,  too,  that  associated 
as  this  request  is  witii  the  name  of  Christ,  it  is 
offered  in  hope.  Despair  cannot  pray.  Despair 
has  no  language  but  its  sullen  and  expressive 
silence,  or  its  maddened  shriek  of  agony.  It  is 
impossible  to  pray  for  pardon,  where  pardon  is 
hopeless.  The  mercy  seat  is  the  throne  of 
grace,  and  the  emblem  of  hope.  No  good 
comes  of  despairing  of  mercy.  The  adversary 
would  drive  the  soul  to  despair,  that  it  may 
seal  its  lips  of  supplication :  he  would  seal  the 
lips  of  supplication,  that  he  may  drive  it  to  de- 
spair. Take  away  all  hope  of  mercy,  and  the 
throne  which  is  now  so  attractive  to  the  guilty, 
would  repel  them  by  its  forbidding  thunder  and 
11* 


250  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


its  flaming  fires.  It  is  only  when  the  suppliant 
looks  to  God,  not  as  the  Holy  God  merely ;  not 
merely  as  the  Lawgiver  and  avenger;  but  as 
the  God  of  love  and  the  Father  of  mercies, 
that  he  comes  near  even  to  his  seat,  points  to 
the  sin-atoning  Lamb,  and  says.  My  Father, 
who  art  in  heaven,  forgive  thy  rebellious,  thy 
guilty  child !  There  is  "  a  rainbow  around 
about  the  throne"  then,  and  he  looks  up  with 
hope.  There  is  balm  in  Gilead,  and  a  physician 
there.  The  Spirit  of  adoption  descends  upon 
him,  and  he  cries,  Abba,  Father!  God  will 
abundantly  pardon.  High  as  the  heavens  are 
above  the  earth,  so  great  is  his  mercy  tow^ard 
them  that  fear  him.  Human  conception,  human 
conjecture,  human  iniquities  cannot  measure  it. 
"  I,  even  I,  am  he  that  blotteth  out  thy  trans- 
gressions for  my  name's  sake,  and  will  no  more 
remember  thy  sins."  It  is  not  the  voice  of 
creatures  wiiich  cheers  the  suppliant  thus  bow- 
ing at  the  throne,  when  it  says,  "  Neither  do  I 
condemn  thee ;  go  and  sin  no  more  !" 

Such  is  the  spirit  with  which  this  request 
should  be  offered.  "  Forgive  us  our  debts,  as 
we  forgive  our  debtors."  It  is  in  the  exercise 
of  this  seriousness  of  mind,  this  honesty  and 
simplicity  of  intention,  this  penitential  sense  of 
sin,  this  faith  in  the  Mediator,  and  this  hope  in 
abounding  mercy,  that  the  sinning  and  guilty 


PRAYER  FOR  FORGIVENESS.  251 


sons  and  daughters  of  men  are  encouraged  to 
seek  forgiveness  from  God.  They  need  for- 
giveness, and  they  need  it  daily.  Vain  is  the 
attempt  to  silence  the  voice  of  conscience,  much 
as  her  remonstrances  may  be  suppressed,  and  the 
strength  of  her  rebtikes  impaired  by  sin.  No 
man  can  practise  this  deception  on  himself  with 
ultimate  success.  The  God  of  heaven  is  able 
at  any  moment  to  fasten  a  sense  of  guilt  upon 
him  that  is  greater  than  he  can  bear.  He  can 
do  it  on  the  bed  of  languishing,  or  under  the 
pressure  of  external  calamity,  or  in  the  flush  of 
health,  and  in  the  heyday  of  cheerfulness  and 
folly.  There  are  a  thousand  ways  in  which  he 
can  take  off  the  covering  from  the  secret 
thoughts  of  men,  refresh  their  memory  in  view 
of  sins  long  past  and  long  forgotten,  and  incite 
their  sluggish  conscience  and  sleeping  fears. 
And  they  shall  have  no  means  to  prevent  reflec- 
tion, or  divert  their  thoughts  from  the  gloomy 
retrospect ;  but  their  wickedness,  in  all  its  forms 
of  ugliness  and  horror,  shall  be  present  to  their 
minds,  and  haunt  their  imaginations  like  so 
many  ill-boding  messengers  of  avenging  justice. 
It  were  the  part  of  wisdom  in  impenitent  and 
unpardoned  men  to  treat  conscience  as  a  friend; 
to  throw  no  obstructions  in  the  way  of  her  faith- 
ful scrutiny ;  to  invite  her  unsparing  rebuke, 
though  she  scourge  them  with  her  vituperating 


252  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


tongue,  and  lash  them  with  her  whip  of  scorpi- 
ons. Better  suffer  all  this,  than  grieve  the  Spirit 
of  God,  become  hardened  through  the  deceitful- 
ness  of  sin,  and  be  overwhelmed  with  still  more 
insupportable  convictions  when  the  day  of  re- 
pentance, and  prayer,  and  jJardon  is  past. 

There  is  hope  for  the  man  who  feels  that  he 
is  a  sinner.  Delightful  thought,  that  to  the  wri- 
ter and  the  reader,  there  is  a  mercy-seat,  and  an 
open  way  to  it  by  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ.  It 
is  good  news  from  heaven,  that "  the  Son  of  Man 
came  to  seek  and  to  save  that  which  was  lost ;" 
that  he  wounds  in  order  to  heal ;  that  he 
"  breaks  not  the  bruised  reed,  nor  quenches  the 
smoking  flax."  There  are  no  higher,  no  greater 
goodness  and  mercy,  than  the  contrite  and  sup- 
pliant offender  finds  at  this  mercy  seat.  They 
are  the  highest  goodness  and  mercy  in  the  uni- 
verse, there  treasured  up  in  Jesus  Christ,  and 
freely  dispensed  by  him  to  whoever  will  ask  and 
take  them. 

Let  none  be  surprised  to  learn,  that  there  is 
no  forgiveness  for  those  who  do  not  ask  it.  A 
prayerless  man  is  an  impenitent  man;  and  the 
decree  never  will  be  altered,  "  Except  ye  re- 
pent, ye  shall  all  likewise  perish."  There 
would  be  no  meaning  in  prayer,  if  men  could  be 
saved  without  it.  The  light  of  heaven  would  be 
obscured;  the  mercy  seat,  itsdf  the  beauty  and 


PRAYER  FOR   FORGIVENESS,  253 


glory  of  heaven,  would  be  tarnished ;  could 
a  pra\'erle.ss  sinner  enter  into  the  kingdom  of 
God.  It  would  be  a  contempt  of  justice,  an  out- 
rage on  the  very  sanctuary  of  mercy. 

Is  the  reader,  then,  familiar  with  the  spirit  of 
this  request  ?  does  he  know  the  relief  of  pardon 
and  grace  ?  does  he  know  the  preciousness  of 
such  a  prayer  ?  Where  a  sense  of  sin  has  taken 
hold  of  the  conscience,  much  more  where  divine 
grace  has  bruised  the  heart,  and  made  it  con- 
trite, the  mercy  seat  is  indeed  a  covert  from  the 
tempest.  Here,  there  is  redemption  through 
the  blood  of  Jesus,  forgiveness  of  sins  according 
to  the  riches  of  his  grace.  Let  those  who 
have  not  accepted  this  redemption,  be  admon- 
ished that  there  is  not  the  least  ray  of  hope  from 
any  other  quarter.  Where  the  waves  and  bil- 
lows of  God's  wrath  go  over  the  soul,  it  must 
take  refuge  in  this  sure  and  safe  retreat,  or 
suffer  shipwreck  for  eternity. 

It  is  the  God  of  mercy  who  has  taught  us  to 
pray  for  mercy.  It  was  not  in  vain  that  he  so- 
journed here  oh  earth,  if  it  had  been  only  to  in- 
struct us  to  say,  "  Forgive,  as  we  forgive." 
Having  left  his  cross,  and  ascended  to  his 
throne,  his  language  is,  "  Him  that  cometh 
to  me,  I  will  in  no  wise  cast  out."  You  will 
stand  speechless  and  condemned  before  his 
throne  of  judgment,  if  you  find  not  forgiveness 


254  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


at  his  throne  of  grace.  Think  not  that  such  a 
privilege  may  be  regarded  with  indifference,  or 
such  a  duty  deferred  to  a  more  convenient  sea- 
son. Talk  not  of  such  a  season.  You  may  de- 
lay in  other  matters,  but  not  here.  Delay — 
what  ?  Delay  becoming  a  man  of  prayer !  delay 
becoming  a  pardoned  sinner!  Delay  deliverance 
from  the  burden  of  sin,  and  the  terrors  of  the 
law !  Delay  a  pacified  conscience,  and  the 
sweet  intimations  of  your  heavenly  Father's 
love !  Delay  going  and  clinging  to  the  ark  of 
the  covenant,  as  your  only  hope!  Millions  of 
worlds  were  no  recompense  for  the  delay  of  one 
poor  hour. 


CHAPTER   XII. 


A  FORGIVING    SPIRIT. 


"/orginB  m  ut  Debts,  as  mt  /nrginB  nnr  Dclitnm" 

In  speaking  of  the  spirit  with  which  the  partic- 
ular request  for  the  forgiveness  of  sin  should  be 
offered,  w^e  have  reserved  for  a  separate  chapter 
the  possession  of  a  foi^giving  spirit  in  our  own. 
bosoms.  "  Forgive  us  our  debts,  as  we  forgive 
our  debtors."  As  Christianity  w^ould  leave  no 
hopes  for  the  guilty,  did  it  not  reveal  the  truth 
that  there  is  forgiveness  with  God  for  men,  so  it 
Avould  lose  its  lustre,  did  it  not  reveal  the  duty 
of  forgiveness  from  men  to  one  another.  A  par- 
doned sinner  is  never  more  justly  obnoxious  to 
reproach,  than  when  he  expresses  an  unforgiving 
spirit  toward  those  who  have  injured  him;  and 
he  never  appears  more  in  his  true,  heaven- 
imparted,  and  heaven-resembling  glory,  than 
when  he  forgives  even  as  he  himself  is  forgiven 
of  God. 

The   language,  "  as  we  forgive  our  debtors,'* 


256  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


cannot  mean  to  institute  a  comparison  between 
God's  mercies  and  our  own  ;  for  the  dispropor- 
tion is  immeasurable  and  infinite.  The  injuries 
we  receive  from  our  fellow-men,  in  nature,  in 
magnitude,  in  number,  form  the  extreme  con- 
trast, rather  than  any  just  and  rational  compari- 
son with  those  which  God  has  received  from  us. 
Forgiveness  in  creatures  is  the  same  in  kind  with 
forgiveness  in  God ;  while,  in  measure  and  de- 
gree, his  pardon  as  far  exceeds  our  own  as  the 
heavens  are  above  the  earth,  and  the  ocean  ex- 
ceeds the  drop  of  dew. 

The  forgiveness  of  injuries  inflicted  on  our- 
selves, is  not  any  equivalent  for  the  mercy  we  ask 
of  God,  nor  does  it  render  us  in  any  way  deserving 
of  his  pardons;  for  this  would  countervail  the 
whole  spirit  of  the  Gospel,  and  displace  the  work 
of  Christ  as  the  only  foundation  of  pardoning  mer- 
cy. There  is  a  very  obvious  distinction  between 
the  foundation  of  forgiveness,  and  the  revealed 
condition  of  forgiveness.  Without  the  work  of 
Christ,  ?zo  man  may  be  forgiven,  whatever  maybe 
his  own  personal  character ;  while,  in  view  and 
on  account  of  his  great  and  meritorious  work,  for- 
giveness" is  imparted  only  to  a  well-defined  class 
of  men.  Tlie  Scriptures  sometimes  specify  one 
Christian  grace  as  the  condition  of  forgiveness, 
and  sometimes  another.  The  sum  and  substance 
of  their  instructionson  this  subject  are,  that  while 


A    FORGIVING   SPIRIT.  257 


no  man  is  entitled  to  acceptance  with  God,  save 
for  the  Redeemer's  obedience  to  the  death  of  the 
cross,  those  and  those  only  are  thus  entitled  who 
are  Christian  men,  who  possess  a  religious  and 
spiritual  character,  and  are  radically  different 
from  what  they  once  were,  when  "  dead  in  tres- 
passes and  sins."  As  one  of  the  exemplifications 
of  this  general  principle,  a  forgiving  spirit  holds 
a  high  and  distinguished  place.  Other  truths 
may  be  taught  more  frequently  in  the  Bible,  but 
none  is  taught  more  plainly  than  this,  that  a  for- 
giving spirit  to  those  who  have  injured  us, 
though  not  the  meritorious  condition  of  forgive- 
ness from  God,  is  that  without  which  none  ob- 
tain forgiveness.  "  For  if  ye  forgive  men,"  says 
the  Saviour,  *'  their  trespasses,  your  heavenly 
Father  will  also  forgive  you ;  but  if  ye  forgive 
not  men  their  trespasses,  neither  will  your  hea- 
venly Father  forgive  your  trespasses."  Else- 
where he  says,  "  When  ye  stand  praying,  for- 
give, if  ye  have  aught  against  any  ;  that  your 
Father  also  which  is  in  heaven  may  forgive  your 
trespasses."  Again,  he  says,  "  Blessed  are  the 
merciful,  for  they  shall  obtain  mercy."  Again, 
it  is  written,  "  With  the  merciful,  thou  wilt 
show  thyself  merciful."  And  again,  as  though 
the  Spirit  of  God  would  sound  the  note  of  alarm 
on  the  conscience  of  every  severe  and  unforgiv- 
ing man,  it   stands   recorded,  "  He  shall    have 


258  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


judgment  without  mercy,  that  hath  showed  no 
mercy." 

We  may  be  in  debt  to  men  as  well  as  to  God, 
and  men  may  be  indebted  to  us.  They  may 
have  done  us  injury,  unprovoked  and  flagrant 
injury;  as  we  ourselves  have  done,  in  forms  so 
varied,  in  numbers  so  countless,  in  enormity  so 
aggravated,  to  our  Father  who  is  in  heaven.  The 
spirit  of  forgiveness  toward  them  is  not  a  Sto- 
ical insensibility  to  wrong,  nor  a  careless  indif- 
ference to  the  injuries  inflicted  upon  us.  This 
forms  no  part  of  God's  character  toward  those 
who  have  sinned  against  Him.  There  is  no 
being  in  the  universe  so  sensitive  to  evil,  so 
alive  to  the  indignity  which  men  have  done  to 
his  nature,  authority  and  goodness,  as  that  pure 
and  holy  Being  to  whom  all  sin  is  "  that  abomi- 
nable thing  which  his  soul  bateth."  Not  to  be 
so  were  connivance  at  iniquity — a  spirit  which 
dwells  in  no  virtuous  and  honorable  mind. 

Nor  is  the  spirit  of  forgiveness  merely  a 
restraint  laid  upon  the  angry  passions ;  a  smoth- 
ering of  our  resentment ;  a  mere  forbearance 
of  the  outward  acts  of  retaliation  while  yet 
the  heart  prompts  to  revenge.  There  is  noth- 
ing like  God  in  this  ;  nothing  Christ-like  ;  noth- 
ing like  the  spirit  of  holy  love,  and  the  kind- 
ness and  charity  of  heave  i.  Many  a  mind 
of  lofty  bearing  retires  as  it  were  within  itself, 


A   FORGIVING   SPIRIT.  259 


and  indulges  in  moody  silence  the  bitterness  of 
its  awakened  and  suppressed  emotions  of  anger. 
This  may  be  a  dignified  self-complacency  in  the 
soul's  powers  of  endurance  ;  it  may  be  deceit 
and  hypocrisy ;  but  it  is  not  a  forgiving  spirit. 
Many  a  proud  and  unforgiving  spirit  demeans 
itself  thus,  which  treasures  up  injury  in  long 
and  revengeful  remembrance ;  wishes  evil  to 
those  who  have  injured  him ;  and  if  he  is  not 
ready  to  do  them  evil,  rejoices  in  their  calamity. 

Still  less  is  a  forgiving  spirit  a  haughty  and  con- 
temptuous disregard  of  those  who  have  wronged 
us,  as  if  they  were  beneath  our  notice.  There 
may  be  as  much  malignity  and  revenge  in  the 
heart  of  such  a  man,  as  in  the  bosom  of  one  who 
demands  the  courtesies  of  social  life  from  his 
equals  at  the  mouth  of  a  pistol,  or  at  the  point 
of  his  sword.  "  Proud  and  haughty  sinner  is 
his  name  who  dealeth  in  proud  wrath." 

A  forgiving  spirit  is  something  of  loftier  ori- 
gin; it  is  a  noble,  generous,  Christian  virtue. 
It  takes  its  rise  in  that  love  of  God  and  man 
which  is  the  fruit  of  the  Spirit  and  the  fulfilling 
of  the  law ;  it  is  made  up  of  love  and  forbear- 
ance, united  with  the  tenderness  of  compassion 
toward  those  Avho  have  injured  us,  and  fortified 
by  some  just  sense  of  our  own  sinfulness  and 
need  of  forgiveness  from  God.  In  the  full  sense 
of  the  thing  itself,  it  consists  in  the  inward  spirit 


260  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


of  forgiveness  and  the  outward  act  of  reconcili- 
ation. It  belongs  to  the  heart,  just  as  every 
other  grace  has  its  seat  in  the  inner  man.  In 
this  view  of  it,  it  is  the  opposite  of  revenge, 
which  angrily  seeks  redress  for  injuries  by  in- 
flicting injuries  in  return.  It  is  the  inward  ex- 
ercise of  kindness  and  good  will  toward  our 
enemies  and  those  who  have  wronged  us.  It  is 
an  abhorrence  of  their  wrong,  yet  a  kind  regard 
for  the  wrong-doer.  It  cannot  be  genuine  un- 
less it  be  accompanied  with  these  benevolent 
emotions,  and  at  a  great  remove  from  all  bitter- 
ness and  wrath.  God  requires  that  we  forgive 
from  the  heart.  Anything  short  of  this  is  hy- 
pocrisy, and  is  accounted  as  such  in  the  judg- 
ment of  Him  who  seeth  not  as  man  seeth.  The 
language  of  the  Saviour  settles  this  point.  "  So 
likewise,"  says  he,  "  shall  my  Heavenly  Father 
do  also  unto  you,  if  ye  from  your  heart  forgive 
not  every  one  his  brother  their  trespasses.'* 
The  requisitions  of  the  Bible  stop  nothing  short 
of  the  complete  concurrence  of  the  soul  in  these 
benevolent  emotions.  This  inward  spirit  ought 
to  be  always  in  exercise,  whatever  may  be  the 
character  of  those  who  have  injured  us,  and 
whatever  their  present  and  future  conduct. 
We  may  feel  benevolently  toward  them  with- 
out at  all  committing  ourselves  in  favor  of  their 
conduct,  or  character.     They  may  repeat  the  in- 


A   FORGIVING  SPIRIT.  261 


jury  they  have  done  us  every  day  of  their  lives, 
but  this  does  not  warrant  in  us  the  spirit  of  ma- 
lignity, or  unkindness.  We  should  love  them 
still,  and  do  them  good  as  we  have  opportunity. 
It  is  not  our  place  to  avenge  the  wrong  they 
have  done ;  "  it  is  written,  vengeance  is  mine, 
I  will  repay,  saith  the  Lord." 

In  addition  to  this  inward  spirit  of  kindness, 
this  constant  disposition  to  forgive,  there  is  also 
the  outward  act  of  reconciliation.  Of  this  we 
must  speak  with  more  caution  and  discrimi- 
nation, because  a  forgiving  God  here  discrim- 
inates. He  himself  is  the  "great  and  essen- 
tial charity;"  and  we  have  no  desire  to  be 
more  lavish  in  outward  acts  of  reconciliation  to 
our  enemies  than  he  toward  his.  His  inward 
spirit  of  kindness  toward  his  enemies  never 
ceases ;  nor  should  ours  cease  toward  our  ene- 
mies. All  the  while  they  remain  his  enemies 
he  is  doing  them  good ;  and  so  should  we  to  our 
enemies  as  we  have  opportunity.  But  he  is  not 
reconciled  to  them ;  he  does  not  adopt  them 
into  his  family ;  give  them  his  complacency  and 
confidence,  and  acknowledge  and  treat  them  as 
his  friends,  until  they  have  become  so.  Nor 
ought  he  to  do  this.  Nor  ought  we  thus  to  re- 
store those  who  have  injured  us  to  our  compla- 
cency and  confidence,  and  be  outwardly  recon- 
ciled to  them,  and  treat  them  as  friends  so  long 


262  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


as  they  conduct  themselves  like  enemies.  The 
spirit  of  forgiveness  does  not  require  this ;  Jesus 
Christ  does  not  require  it.  "  If  thy  brother  sin 
against  thee,  and  return  and  say,  1  repent,  forgive 
him."  Forgiveness  then,  will,  from  its  own  kind 
promptings,  become  outward  reconciliation.  It 
will  not  be  the  reconciliation  of  words ;  it  will 
not  be  any  mere  outward  semblance  of  friend- 
ship ;  it  will  be  frank,  full,  unfeigned.  In  fos- 
tering such  a  spirit  thus  expressed,  no  man  can 
go  too  far.  "  If  thy  brother  trespass  against 
thee  seven  times  in  a  day,  and  seven  times  in  a 
day  turn  again  to  thee,  saijing,  I  repent,  thou  shalt 
forgive  him,"  This  is  Christian  forgiveness ; 
this  is  forgiving  in  some  faint  measure  as  God 
forgives ;  this  is  placing  forgiveness  upon  true 
grounds — ground  corresponding  with  the  work 
wrought  in  the  heart  of  every  Christian  man  by 
the  Holy  Spirit.  Such  forgiveness  as  God  ap- 
proves is  alike  the  expression  and  the  evidence 
of  a  disposition  produced  by  the  power  of  his 
grace  in  the  soul  that  is  itself  forgiven. 

Our  task  is  comparatively  easy,  therefore,  as 
we  proceed  to  show  why  the  spirit  of  forgive- 
ness in  men  is  made  a  revealed  condition  of 
their  obtaining  forgiveness  from  God.  The  rea- 
son why  a  man  of  an  unforgiving  spirit  cannot 
obtain  forgiveness  is,  that  he  is  destitute  of  all 
true  and  genuine  piety.     The  force  of  this  re- 


A  FORGIVING   SPIRIT.  263 


mark  may  perhaps  be  the  better  perceived  by 
something  like  the  following  observations. 

Such  a  man  has  no  true  sense  of  his  own  sins. 
It  is  not  necessary,  after  what  has  been  said  in 
the  two  previous  chapters,  to  show  that  the 
cure  of  sin  must  be  preceded  by  a  sense  of  the 
malady,  and  with  a  humiliating  conviction  of 
personal  defilement.  Those  w^ho  are  sensible 
that  they  themselves  have  done  so  much  to  pro- 
voke God's  displeasure,  and  who  constantly 
stand  in  need  of  forgiveness,  will  be  slow  to 
demand  retribution  for  the  petty  injuries  they 
have  received  from  their  fellow-men.  The 
measure  which  an  unforgiving  spirit  would 
mete  out  to  others,  would  bear  hard  upon  their 
own  character.  A  due  consideration  of  their 
own  indebtedness  would  make  them  placable, 
if  not  suppress  all  desire  of  retaliation.  The 
hard-hearted  creditor  who  had  just  been  for- 
given the  ten  thousand  talents,  and  who  yet 
rigidly  exacted  from  another  the  one  hundred 
pence,  and  in  default  thereof  cast  his  debtor  into 
prison,  justly  excited  the  indignation  of  his  Lord, 
and  the  grief  of  his  fellow-servants.  Those 
cannot  think  very  often,  nor  reason  very  justly, 
nor  feel  very  deeply  for  their  ow^n  liabilities, 
who  are  thus  rigorously  severe.  It  is  the  most 
lamentable  of  all  sights  to  see  a  man  who  has 
received  injury  from  his  fellow-worm,  so  forget- 


264  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


ful  of  his  multiplied  and  aggravated  offences 
against  God,  as  to  go  to  the  throne  of  grace  and 
plead  for  the  pardon  of  his  own  sins,  in  the  spirit 
of  revenge  toward  his  offending  brother  !  A 
sense  of  his  own  sins  never  could  have  rested 
with  weight  upon  the  mind  of  such  a  man ;  nor 
could  he  ever  have  felt  serious  and  lasting  solici- 
tude for  his  own  soul.  When  one  fellow-worm 
displeases  another,  the  latter  is  cold  and  dis- 
tant ;  he  swells  in  self-importance ;  he  looks 
big;  there  must  be  negotiation  upon  negotia- 
tion ;  and  after  all,  there  is  no  heart  in  the  rec- 
onciliation. But  who  art  thou  that  thus  judgest 
another  man's  servant  ?  What  w^onder  if  the 
God  of  justice  should  say  to  such  a  man,  "  Pay 
ME  that  thou  owest !" 

Nor  do  we  see  how  such  a  man  can  have  any 
true  sense  of  the  divine  mercy.  That  he  must 
have  made  a  devout  and  humble  application  to 
the  Lord  Jesus  for  mercy;  must  have  succeeded 
in  his  suit;  and  must  have  some  grateful  re- 
membrance of  those  solemn  transactions  be- 
tween the  God  of  mercy  and  his  own  soul,  in 
order  to  be  a  Christian,  all  will  allow. 

"  We  do  pray  for  mercy  ; 


And  that  same  prayer  should  lead  us  all 

To  render  deeds  of  merc3^ 

How  shall  those  hope  for  mercy,  rendering  none  ?' 


A  FORGIVING  SPIRIT.  265 


How  do  you  forgive  your  fellow-men  who  tres- 
pass against  you  ?  This  is  the  test  by  which 
the  Scriptures  determine  our  own  estimate  of 
the  boundless  mercy  in  which  God  hath  caused 
us  to  hope.  It  is  horrible  for  a  man,  malignant 
against  those  who  have  offended  him,  to  come 
and  ask  free  forgiveness  from  God.  Satisfaction 
to  the  utmost  farthing  is  insisted  on  by  the 
rebel,  who,  if  he  enjoys  peace  at  all,  must  have 
a  free  pardon  from  Him  whose  mercies  are  great 
unto  the  heavens !  An  unforgiving  spirit  has 
never  tasted  and  seen  that  the  Lord  is  gracious ; 
it  is  utterly  inconsistent  with  the  Christian  hope. 
Unforgiveness  belongs  to  the  unforgiving;  it 
belongs  to  those  who  are  "  hateful  and  hating 
one  another."  Its  true  and  primeval  residence 
is  the  region  of  hate — the  region  of  hell.  The 
devil's  malice  is  more  excusable,  because  he 
gets  no  forgiveness.  The  pardoned  sinner  can 
afford  to  forgive,  for  he  knows  what  forgiveness 
is.  If  others  will  have  revenge,  it  belongs  not 
to  him.  He  has  what  no  otherspossess — pardon 
from  the  God  of  pardons — forgiveness  from  him 
whom  he  has  provoked  more  than  it  is  possible 
for  his  fellow-men  to  provoke  him.  And  he  has 
too  the  consolation  that  the  approving  and  vigi- 
lant eye  of  the  Lord  is  upon  him,  and  that  he 
has  a  refuge  at  his  throne  which  is  more  than  a 
counterbalance  for  all  that  he  can  endure  from 
12 


266  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


his  enemies.  The  throne  of  grace  is  accessible 
to  him ;  but  the  face  of  the  Lord  is  against  the 
revengeful,  that  he  may  cut  them  off. 

It  is  equally  true  that  a  man  of  an  unforgiving 
spirit  has  fio  love  to  God  in  his  heart.  There  is 
no  surer  mark  or  criterion  by  which  men  may 
determine  whether  they  are  in  a  state  of  accept- 
ance or  condemnation,  than  love  to  God.  And 
it  must  be  ow  ing  to  delusion,  or  the  want  of  im- 
partial inquiry,  if  any  man,  with  the  Bible  in  his 
hands,  can  persuade  himself  that  love  to  God  is 
compatible  with  an  unforgiving  spirit.  For  "  he 
who  loveth  not  his  brother  whom  he  hath  seen, 
how  can  he  love  God  w  hom  he  hath  not  seen  ?" 
The  only  thing  of  God  which  he  can  see  and 
love,  is  this  creature  of  God  whom  he  hates. 
The  only  thing  of  God  which  bears  his  image, 
and  which  God  requires  him  to  love,  and  to  for- 
give, even  as  God  for  Christ's  sake  has  forgiven 
him,  is  his  brother  against  w^hom  he  is  treasur- 
ing up  the  long  arrears  of  malignity  and  revenge. 
"If  a  man  say,  I  love  God,  and  hateth  his 
brother,  he  is  a  liar."  Thus  summarily  do  the 
Scriptures  treat  the  man  who  professes  to  love 
God,  yet  has  an  unforgiving  spirit.  Never  was 
man  more  baptized  with  the  love  of  God,  than 
the  disciple  who  made  that  unutterably  tender 
appeal,  "  Beloved,  if  God  so  loved  us,  we  ought 
also  to  love  one  another."     This  is  the  great 


A  FORGIVING  SPIRIT.  267 


principle  of  forgiveness.  If  God  can  see  any- 
thing in  men  to  love,  men  may  surely  see  some- 
thing to  love  in  one  another.  If  He  can  love 
creatures  thus  vile  and  abject,  surely  we,  if  we 
know  anything  of  the  love  of  God  ourselves,  can 
love  them  also.  If  He  can  overlook  their  faults, 
we  can  cast  the  mantle  of  heavenly  charity  over 
them,  and  forgive  and  love  them  still.  If  God's 
love  to  us,  and  ours  to  him,  were  the  ruling  prin- 
ciple of  our  conduct  toward  our  fellow-men,  we 
should  not  find  so  wide  a  place  in  our  hearts  for 
suspicion  and  wickedness,  for  jealousy,  hatred, 
and  revenge.  We  should  not  find  men  rejoicing 
in  the  calamity  of  their  enemies,  aggravating 
their  calamity  and  their  offences,  and  holding 
their  persons  in  abhorrence.  Much  less  should 
we  find  men  in  the  church  of  God,  who  will  not 
speak  to  each  other  for  a  w  hole  year,  dare  to 
come  and  sit  down  together  at  the  table  of 
Christ,  and  commemorate  that  love  to  which 
they  are  strangers.  To  injure  our  fellow-men, 
is  no  proof  of  the  love  of  God  in  the  heart ;  nor 
is  it  any  proof  of  that  love,  to  treasure  up  the  in- 
jury. 

Nor  may  w^e  overlook  the  thought,  that  where 
the  spirit  of  forgiveness  is  wanting,  there  can  be 
no  honest  regard  for  the  interests  of  human  society . 
The  laws  of  Christ's  kingdom  do  not  allow  any 
man  to  live  for  himself  alone.    He  who  does  this. 


268  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


is  universally  despised  and  condemned.  "  Israel 
is  an  empty  vine ;  he  bringetli  forth  fruit  to  him- 
self." The  man  of  an  unforgiving  spirit  is  gov- 
erned too  much  by  a  regard  to  himself,  and  too 
little  by  a  regard  to  the  happiness  of  others,  to 
be  a  Christian  man.  He  attaches  no  importance 
to  that  course  of  conduct  vrhich  tends  to  make 
the  world  in  which  he  lives  the  holier  and  the 
happier.  The  warmth  of  his  benevolence  is 
chilled  by  too  keen  a  sensibility  to  his  private 
interests.  He  cares  not  to  heal  the  festering 
sores  that  are  breaking  out,  and  spreading  their 
baleful  infection.  His  is  not  the  charity  which 
"  suffereth  long,  and  is  kind,"  which  "  is  not 
easily  provoked,"  and  "  meditates  no  evil," 
which  "  beareth  all  things,  believeth  all  things, 
hopeth  all  things,"  and  "  seeketh  not  her  own." 
Men  who,  for  want  of  a  spirit  of  kindness,  can 
alienate  themselves  from  the  affections  of  those 
around  them  ;  who  are  so  sensitive  and  irritable, 
that  they  do  little  else  than  multiply  enemies ; 
who  give  up  all  the  sweets  of  human  kindness, 
for  the  sake  of  remembering  and  revenging  some 
worn-out  injury,  and  who  forego  all  the  love  of 
friends,  because  they  will  not  forgive  their  ene- 
mies ;  cannot  be  Christians.  Animosity  between 
man  and  man  will  never  cease,  acrimony  will 
never  be  softened  to  the  charity  of  the  Gospel, 
and  men  united  in  fraternal  affection,  until  they 


A  FORGIVING   SPIRIT.  269 


learn  to  "  love  their  enemies,  and  do  good  to 
tiiem  that  hate  them."  This  view  of  the  influ- 
ence of  an  unforgiving  spirit  is  overlooked  by  the 
unforgiving.  It  is  not  easy  for  them  to  estimate 
the  happiness  of  that  community  where  all  is 
kind  and  placable,  forgiving  and  merciful. 

"  The  quality  of  mercy  is  not  strained ; 
It  droppeth  as  the  gentle  rain  from  heaven, 
Upon  the  place  beneath.     It  is  thrice  blessed ; 
It  blesseth  him  who  gives,  and  him  who  takes. 
'Tis  miffhitest  in  the  mightiest :  it  becomes 
The  sceptred  monarch  better  than  his  crown." 

How  soon  w^ould  the  remembrance  of  injuries 
be  effaced,  and  how  surely  followed  by  peni- 
tence on  the  one  part,  and  tenderness  and  gen- 
erosity on  the  other,  were  this  spirit  to  predomi- 
nate !  And  even  if  "  it  must  needs  be  that 
offences  come,"  how  w^ould  their  number  be 
lessened,  and  their  obtrusiveness  and  malignity 
mitigated  !  Retaliation  provokes.  Enmity  can- 
not stand  before  love. 

It  were  easy  to  multiply  illustrations  of  the 
truth  that  an  unforgiving  spirit  is  not  the  spirit 
of  Christianity,  and  that  a  spirit  of  revenge  is 
not  the  spirit  of  prayer.  It  is  a  trite  saying,  but 
has  much  point,  that  "  to  render  good  for  evil, 
is  Godlike ;  good  for  good,  manlike  ;  evil  for 
evil,  beastlike  ;    evil  for  good,  devil-like."     It 


270  THE  MERCY   SEAT, 


is  tl)e  Godlike  we  should  strive  after.  Not  all 
the  wrath  of  man,  nor  rage  of  fiends,  could  pro- 
voke one  revengeful  look,  or  angry  emotion,  in 
that  bosom  of  love  and  mercy.  Earth  and  hell 
did  their  best  to  provoke  him  to  the  unchanging 
purpose  of  destruction  ;  but  they  could  not  pre- 
vent his  sun  from  rising  "  on  the  evil  and  on  the 
good,"  nor  his  rain  from  descending  "  on  the 
just,  and  on  the  unjust."  The  earth  brings 
forth  her  increase,  though  the  foot  of  rebellion 
stalks  upon  it.  Nor  could  all  the  fury  of  fiends, 
nor  the  malignity  of  men,  prevent  him  from  giv- 
ing his  Son  to  die,  the  just  One  in  the  place  of 
the  unjust.  His  prayer  for  them  that  "  hated 
him  without  a  cause"  was  "yet  in  their  calami- 
ties." Even  while  he  was  stretched  on  the 
cross,  amid  their  murderous  cruelty  and  in- 
sulting mockeries,  the  last  breathings  of  his 
heavenly  spirit  found  relief  from  its  own  agonies 
and  a  palliative  for  their  sins,  in  the  prayer, 
*' Father,  forgive  them,  for  they  know  not  what 
they  do."  Well  has  it  been  said,  "  Socrates 
died  like  a  Philosopher ;  Jesus  Christ  like  a 
God."  This  is  the  true  glory  of  our  common 
Christianity.  It  would  make  forgiven  man  for- 
giving and  happy.  It  would  dry  up  the  sources 
of  his  bitter  wrangling,  his  poignant  remorse,! 
his  corroding  self-reproach,  his  stinging  shame. 
It  would  chase  from  his  pillow  those  dreams  of 


A  FORGIVING  SPIRIT,  271 


violence  and  blood  which  haunt  the  man  on 
whose  wrath  the  sun  goes  down  ;  while  it  would 
fain  bring  angels  of  mercy  to  keep  their  watch 
over  the  head  of  the  peaceful  and  forgiving.  It 
would  crush  the  scorpion  within  the  bosom  of 
the  unforgiving,  that  stings  him  to  madness.  It 
would  quench  the  fires  that  consume  him,  that 
he  may  no  longer  fan  them  with  his  own  breath. 
It  has  made  the  only  provision  for  the  peace  of 
men — for  the  peace  of  the  world.  It  contem- 
plates the  universal  brotherhood  of  man  as  one 
of  its  great  objects ;  nor  will  its  legitimate  in- 
fluence be  duly  felt  until  the  nations  "  learn  war 
no  more."  No  man  can  read  the  New  Testa- 
ment without  being  struck  with  its  pacific  char- 
acter. The  visions  of  the  Golden  Age  would 
soon  return,  did  men  obey  its  injunctions  and 
cease  to  be  the  avengers  of  wrong.  A  dishon- 
est Christian,  a  debauched  Christian,  a  drunken 
Christian,  a  lying  Christian,  is  not  a  greater  ab- 
surdity than  a  contentious,  unforgiving  Christian. 
Men  of  contention  cannot  be  men  of  prayer. 
Men  whose  professional  calling  exposes  them  to 
stormy  discussion  with  their  fellow-men ;  men 
whose  habits  of  life  call  them  upon  the  arena 
of  political  strife,  find  within  them,  too  often, 
such  a  state  of  mind  as  unfits  them  for  fellow- 
ship with  God.  Much  less  can  a  man  pray  with 
the    spirit  of  revenge   rankling   in    fiis   bosom. 


272  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 

His  conscience  hesitates,  his  lips  falter  when 
he  says,  "  Forgive  us  our  trespasses,  as  we  for- 
give those  who  trespass  against  us ;"  lest  he 
should  be  using  the  prayer  against  himself,  and 
invoking  a  curse  rather  than  a  blessing.  God 
will  take  the  unforgiving  at  their  word.  The 
denunciations  of  the  Bible  should  fall  on  the 
ear  of  such  a  man  like  the  knell  of  the  second 
death.  "  O  thou  wicked  servant !  shouldest  tiiou 
not  have  had  compassion  on  thy  fellow-servant, 
even  as  I  had  compassion  on  thee  '?"  Not  satis- 
fied with  having  inculcated  the  duty  of  forgive- 
ness in  a  didactic  form,  he  has  put  a  daily  prayer 
into  our  lips,  which,  if  we  ourselves  possess  not 
a  forgiving  spirit,  invokes  him  to  say  to  us  as  he 
does  to  the  slothful  servant,  "  Out  of  thine  own 
mouth  do  I  condemn  thee  !" 

History  furnishes  an  affecting  ilhistration  of  the 
need  of  a  spirit  of  forgiveness,  in  order  to  the  re- 
taining of  our  evidence  of  forgiveness  from  God. 
There  was  in  the  church  at  Antioch,  in  the  third 
century,  a  minister  by  the  name  of  Sapricius,  and 
a  layman  by  the  name  of  Nicephorus,  who  after 
long  intimacy  had  fallen  into  an  unhappy  quarrel, 
and  carried  it  so  far  that  they  would  not  speak 
to  each  other  when  they  met.  After  a  while 
Nicephorus  relented,  and  took  every  measure 
for  reconciliation,  but  in  vain.  He  even  tlu'ew 
himself  at  l^ie  feet  of  his  former  friend,  and  en- 


A  FORGIVING  SPIRIT.  273 


treated  forgiveness  for  the  Lord's  sake,  but 
without  effect.  About  this  time,  a  new  storm 
of  persecution  arose,  and  Sapricius  was  marked 
out  as  one  of  the  victims.  The  magistrates 
ordered  him  to  obey  the  Emperor,  and  sacrifice 
to  the  heathen  god.  But  he  appeared  ready  to 
witness  a  good  confession,  and  replied  in  an  ex- 
pression of  his  higher  allegiance  to  the  King  of 
kings,  "■  Perish  idols,  which  can  do  neither  harm, 
nor  good  !"  The  torture  was  applied,  and  he 
bore  it  firmly.  The  magistrate  then  commanded 
him  to  be  beheaded,  and  while  he  was  led  out 
to  execution,  Nicephorus  followed  him,  entreat- 
ing his  forgiveness.  But  it  was  in  vain  ;  Sapri- 
cius' unforgiving  temper  remained  to  the  last. 
At  this  juncture  did  the  Saviour  make  good  his 
word,  "  If  ye  forgive  not  men  their  trespasses, 
neither  will  your  Heavenly  Father  forgive  your 
trespasses."  For  at  this  trying  period,  all  Sa- 
pricius' firmness  forsook  him ;  the  fear  of  death 
overpowered  him,  he  recanted,  and  saved  his 
life,  while  seemingly  on  the  point  of  seizing  the 
crown  of  martyrdom.  While  at  the  same  time 
the  Saviour's  faithfulness  was  remarkably  ex- 
pressed toward  the  individual  who  had  mani- 
fested a  forgiving  spirit.  Nicephorus,  annoyed 
at  so  unexpected  a  change  in  Sapricius,  exhort- 
ed him  to  adhere  to  the  faith,  but  in  vain.  And 
then  himself  flaming  with  zeal  for  the  Christian 


274  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


cause,  so  dishonored,  turned  to  the  executioners 
and  said,  "  I  believe  in  the  name  of  the  Lord 
Jesus,  whom  he  has  renounced."  This  was  re- 
ported to  the  Emperor,  and  Nicephorus  received 
the  crown  of  martyrdom !  We  cannot  rely 
upon  the  divine  mercy  for  ourselves,  while  in- 
dulging an  unforgiving  and  unchristian  spirit 
toward  others. 

O  that  the  divine  pattern  of  our  blessed  Mas- 
ter were  more  constantly  before  the  eye  of  his 
own  followers  !  That  meek  and  forgiving  spirit 
of  his,  like  "  the  angel  standing  in  the  sun,"  was 
the  brightest  of  that  bright  assemblage  of  ex- 
cellencies that  were  his  unequal  adornment. 
The  impressions  which  men  receive  of  his  re- 
ligion are,  to  no  small  extent,  derived  from  the 
spirit  and  conduct  of  his  disciples.  Hatred, 
ill  will,  and  revenge,  are  not  the  most  convinc- 
ing evidence  of  the  power  of  Christianity;  and 
in  giving  w^ay  to  them  his  disciples  obstruct  the 
influence  of  those  truths  which  are  the  power 
of  God  to  salvation.  While  on  the  other  hand, 
the  kind  and  conciliatory  spirit  of  the  Gospel, 
expressed  especially  in  the  forgiveness  of  inju- 
ries, wins  upon  the  suspicion  and  jealousy  of  its 
opposers  and  extorts  a  tribute  of  respect,  if  not  of 
admiration,  for  principles  of  such  efficacy  over 
the  turbulent  passions  of  men. 


CHAPTER   XIII. 


A  MARTIAL  SPIRIT  NOT  THE  SPIRIT  OF  CHRISTIANITY 


''/nrgtHB  ns  aiir  Mb,  m  mt  /nrgim  nar  Srlitnrs." 

Whatever  may  be  our  refinements  in  reason- 
ing, on  the  question,  Whether  war  in  any 
instance  is  justifiable  ?  we  cannot  be  mistaken 
when  we  say,  that  a  martial  spirit  is  not  the 
spirit  of  Christianity.  "  From  whence  come 
wars  and  fightings  among  you  V  says  the  Apostle 
James;  "come  they  not  hence,  even  of  your 
lusts  that  war  in  your  members  ?  Ye  lust  and 
have  not ;  ye  kill,  and  desire  to  have,  because  ye 
cannot  obtain;  ye  Jight  and  war,  yet  ye  have 
not."  This  is  a  true  account  of  the  origin,  the 
nature,  and  ends  of  well  nigh  all  the  wars  that 
have  convulsed  the  world. 

If  we  vi'^ere  called  upon  to  write  an  elaborate 
dissertation,  in  defence  of  the  Scriptural  doctrine 
of  human  apostasy,  and  the  entire  and  unmixed 
sinfulness  of  the  human  heart,  as  it  is  by  nature, 
one  of  our  strong  defences  would  be  the  whole 


276  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


subject  of  war.  We  would  have  a  chapter  en- 
titled, War,  a  proof  of  total  depravitij. 

It  is  beyond  measure  surprising,  to  see  how  the 
minds  of  benevolent  and  virtuous  men  have  been, 
for  centuries,  perverted  and  blinded,  on  a  subject 
which,  but  for  maxims  sanctioned  by  time,  and 
customs  handed  down  from  generation  to  gener- 
ation, one  would  suppose  were  among  the  plain- 
est subjects  in  the  world.  The  causes,  the 
nature,  and  the  objects  of  war,  cannot  be  justi- 
fied by  any  one  principle  of  the  Christian  faith, 
or  any  one  of  those  gracious  affections  which  are 
the  fruit  of  God's  spirit. 

We  repeat  the  Apostle's  question,  TV7i€?ice 
come  wars  and  fightings  ?  In  a  multitude  of 
cases,  the  great  question  of  peace  or  war  is  de- 
termined by  caprice  or  passion.  The  causes  of 
war  are  often  to  the  last  degree  trivial,  and  de- 
pend little  on  the  magnitude  of  the  injury 
received.  Even  as  judicious  a  writer  as  Dr.  Pa- 
ley  observes,  that  "  in  a  larger  sense,  ever3r  just 
war  is  a  defensive  war;  inasmuch  as  every  just 
war  supposes  an  injury  perpetrated,  attempted, 
or  feared."  Is  not  this  a  remarkable  declara- 
tion? and  does  it  not  present  to  a  belligerent 
world  a  cloak  large  enough  to  cover  all  the 
blood  that  is  ever  shed  in  war  ?  Much  as  some 
of  the  writings  of  this  accomplished  author  are 
to  be  respected,  we  do  not  hesitate  to  say,  that  a 


A  MARTIAL   SPIRIT.  277 


more  corrupt,  pestilent,  atrocious  sentiment  has 
rarely  been  advanced  than  this.  It  is  an  indeli- 
ble blot  on  the  page  of  Archdeacon  Paley's 
Moral  Philosophy.  If  an  injury  be  either  perpe- 
trated, attempted,  or  even  feared,  there  is  just 
cause  of  war !  The  injured,  or  suspicious,  or 
ambitious  nation  is,  of  necessity,  the  sole  judge 
of  the  injury  perpetrated,  attempted,  or  feared. 
This  wide  range  of  "  precaution,  defence,  or  re- 
paration," would  have  better  suited  the  "  Moral 
Philosophy"  of  such  a  man  as  Robespierre  or 
Napoleon.     No  wonder  the  nations  go  to  war. 

It  w^ould  be  an  amusing  chapter,  to  specify 
some  of  the  causes  of  war,  though  it  would 
not  be  a  short  one.  The  Roman  ambassador 
once  received  an  insult  in  the  city  of  Corinth; 
and  the  consul,  Mummius,  w^as  immediately 
sent  with  an  army,  and  the  city  was  destroyed. 
An  idle  jest  of  Philip,  the  King  of  France,  utter- 
ed against  William  I.,  of  England,  sent  fire  and 
sword  into  the  kingdom  of  the  heedless  offender. 
In  the  reign  of  Edward  I.,  a  bitter  conflict  was 
carried  on  between  France  and  England,  which 
originated  in  a  personal  quarrel  between  two 
seamen  at  Bayonne.  The  reign  of  Edward  II., 
of  England,  was  one  of  continual  warfare,  and  for 
causes  which  brand  the  tyrant's  name  with  exe- 
cration. Sir  W.  Molesworth  stated  in  the 
British   Parliament,   last    year,    that    the    war 


278  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


with  the  Kaffirs,  in  India,  which  cost  the  British 
nation  $12,000,000,  was  occasioned  by  the  loss 
of  one  axe  and  two  goat.s,  which  were  alleged  to 
have  been  stolen  by  the  Kaffirs. 

Dr.  Paley  did  not  seem  to  perceive,  that  the 
views  he  has  published  to  the  w^orld  would 
amount  to  a  justification  of  most  of  the  wars,  and 
many  of  the  vilest  and  wickedest,  that  ever 
scourged  the  human  race.  Powerful  and  ambi- 
tious rulers,  and  restless  and  avaricious  people, 
often  wish  for  war.  Furnished  with  so  wide  a 
limit  of  permission,  they  could  not  wish  for  more. 
The  object  of  Cyrus  was  to  free  the  world  from 
the  tyranny  of  the  Assyrian  empire,  and  to 
avenge  the  injuries  of  the  Medes  and  Persians. 
Alexander  sought  to  revenge  the  several  Persian 
invasions,  and  expecially  the  death  of  his  father. 
The  Peloponnesian  war  was  to  free  the  States  of 
Greece  from  the  haughty  domination  of  Pericles, 
and  the  alarming  ascendency  of  Athens.  The 
Punic  war  was  to  redress  innumerable  injuries, 
real  and  great.  The  Macedonian  war  had  much 
of  ''  reparation  and  precaution"  at  bottom. 
Caesar's  wars  on  Gaul  were,  on  the  same  princi- 
ple, just  wars,  from  causes  as  ancient  as  Porsen- 
na  and  Brennus.  And  as  to  Caesar  and  Pompey's 
war,  their  object  was  to  free  Rome  from  an 
odious  tyrant,  evidently  aiming  at  sovereign 
power.     The  wars  of  Charles  and  Francis  were 


A  MARTIAL  SPIRIT.  279 


very  just,  as  they  were  designed  to  redress  all 
manner  of  injuries.  Napoleon's  wars,  too,  were 
all  very  just,  for  their  object  was  to  break  down 
the  despotism  of  Europe.  England's  war  with 
Napoleon  was  just,  for  she  feared  his  power. 

The  immense  latitude  given  by  some  writers 
to  the  definition  of  defensive  war  enables  it 
to  embrace  most  of  those  wars  which  are 
properly  and  strictly  oifensive,  unwarrantable, 
and  odious  in  the  sight  of  God.  It  amounts  to  a 
vindication  of  all  wars  whatever,  as  full  and  com- 
plete as  the  most  sanguinary  and  despotic  tyrant 
could  desire. 

The  phrase  defensive  war,  when  stripped  of  the 
cobwebs  in  which  the  subtleties  of  political  cas- 
uists have  entangled  and  enwrapped  it,  when 
narrowed  down  from  those  almost  unmeasured 
limits,  given  it  for  the  purpose  of  an  equitable 
pretext  to  justify  every  project  of  ambition, 
means,  a  ivar  made  to  meet  and  repel  an  invading 
foe.  The  sound  of  a  word  leads  to  a  radical  error 
on  this  subject.  A  war  whose  prime  object  is 
the  defence  of  something  or  other,  is  not  cer- 
tainly, therefore,  a  defensive  war.  Never  was 
greater  perversion  of  language.  A  war  to  de- 
fend the  honor  of  a  king,  a  minister,  an  ambas- 
sador, or  even  a  kingdom,  is  no  more  a  defensive 
war  than  a  war  to  defend  the  honor  of  a  cour- 
tier's mistress,  or  a  lady's  lap-dog.     The  diplo- 


280  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


matic  science  is  easily  capable  of  changing  right 
into  wrong  and  wrong  into  right,  on  the  most  ex- 
tensive scale.  The  presence  of  invading  ene- 
mies or  armies,  is  the  true  and  only  cause  of 
defensive  war.  The  nation  that  wages  oiTensive 
war — that  first  throws  dow  n  the  gauntlet — that 
first  falls  upon  its  neighbor  with  fire  and  sw^ord, 
ought  to  weigh  well  the  causes  in  the  balance  of 
the  sanctuary.  For  there  is  not  a  life  taken  in 
w^ar  that  is  not  as  truly  chargeable  to  some  one 
as  the  premeditated  murder.  Men,  alas !  lose 
themselves  in  the  splendor  of  vain  and  pompous 
theories,  and  forget  that  the  value  of  human  life 
cannot  be  thus  done  away  by  the  momentary  and 
artificial  structure  of  civil  government,  to  be  dis- 
solved by  the  stroke  of  death,  when  every  soul  is 
handed  over  to  the  immutable  retributions  of 
eternity.  God  no  further  approves  of  human 
governments,  than  as  they  exert  their  influence 
for  the  security  of  life  and  the  promotion  of 
sound  morality  and  true  happiness. 

Admit  that  one  nation  injures  another.  Per- 
haps the  injury  is  trifling,  and  had  better  be  en- 
dured than  resort  to  war  for  redress.  It  is  also 
altogether  uncertain  whether  redress  can  be 
obtained  by  w  ar,  the  events  of  which  cannot  be 
foreseen.  In  the  history  of  most,  if  not  all  the 
wars  ever  undertaken  for  redress  of  injuries,  it 
will   be  found  that  few  terminated  with  com- 


A  MARTIAL   SPIRIT.  281 


plete  success.  They  have  sometimes  termi- 
nated in  the  ruin  of  one,  and  sometimes  of  both 
belligerents.  When  the  injured  nation  was  the 
weakest,  she  has  generally  fought  to  redress  in- 
juries, and  then  made  peace  to  avoid  greater. 
Generally  speaking,  the  nation  which  makes  war 
to  obtain  the  redress  of  injuries,  is  infallibly  cer- 
tain of  sustaining  more  injury  in  the  progress  of 
the  war,  than  she  would  by  the  injury  continued. 
She  will  lose  more  than  she  will  gain,  and 
perhaps  fail  of  redress  at  last.  As  to  the  na- 
tion who  is  the  aggressor,  the  war  made  by  her 
will  plunge  thousands  in  misery,  who  are  no 
more  accountable  for  the  aggression  than  the 
people  of  another  world; — it  may  chiefly  fall  on 
those  who  are  most  innocent  and  most  deserv- 
ing. The  aggression,  too,  may  be  of  a  very 
doubtful  nature.  The  charge  may  be  abated 
by  the  plea  of  right  on  the  part  of  the  supposed 
offender ;  and  it  may  be  a  case  about  which  the 
ablest  civilians  and  jurists  may  differ  in  opinion. 
And  in  most,  if  not  in  all  cases,  the  whole  con- 
troversy may  be  adjusted  by  amicable  negotia- 
tion or  arbitration,  without  recourse  to  the  shed- 
ding of  blood. 

Who  can  reflect  on  the  evils  of  war  itself, 
and  on  the  motives  and  causes  which,  with  very 
few  exceptions,  produce  it,  and  not  be  filled 
with    horror   at   the   immense   weight  of  guilt 


282  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


which  must  attach  to  the  authors  of  it  ?  Is  the 
divine  government  so  feeble,  short-sighted,  par- 
tial, and  absurd,  as  to  justify  the  destruction  of 
cities,  the  death  of  millions,  the  exterminating 
of  nations,  on  account  of  some  supposed  or  real 
indignity  offered  to  some  crowned  and  sceptred 
wretch,  perhaps  a  greater  villain  than  any  one 
of  the  millions  over  whom  he  reigns  ?  Is  this 
Christianity  ?  How  will  the  righteous  and  al- 
mighty Judge  one  day  determine  these  ques- 
tions ? 

What  is  ivar  ?  To  many  this  may  seem  an 
unnecessary  question.  War,  as  understood  by 
the  mass  of  mankind,  is  a  state  of  conflict  be- 
tween two  nations,  in  which  battles  are  won, 
towns  taken,  men  wounded  and  slain;  bringing 
glory  and  profit  to  the  victor,  and  dishonor  and 
loss  to  the  vanquished.  This  however  is  but 
a'n  imperfect  definition  of  war.  The  favored 
land  where  a  kind  providence  has  determined 
our  residence,  has,  with  the  single  exception 
of  the  short  conflict  with  Great  Britain,  and  the 
recent  and  more  bloody  war  with  Mexico,  for  so 
long  time  enjoyed  the  blessings  of  peace,  that 
there  are  a  few  now  living  among  us  who  know 
anything  of  the  stern  realities  of  a  state  of  w^x- 
fare.  Europe,  also,  exhausted  by  the  wars  of 
the  French  Revolution,  the  consulate  and  the 
empire,   has,   until    her   recent   internal   agita- 


A  MARTIAL   SPIRIT.  283 


tion,  for  a  period  of  thirty  years,  rested  on  her 
arms.  It  has  been  our  allotment  to  live  in  a 
most  wonderful  period  of  the  world,  a  period  of 
rapid  improvement  in  arts  and  sciences,  of  grow- 
ing population,  enterprise  and  wealth;  of  almost 
undisturbed  tranquillity  and  joy.  Few  genera- 
tions of  men  have  been  born  to  such  a  period, 
or  under  such  radiant  skies.  The  great  mass 
of  our  citizens  have  never  witnessed  the  scenes 
of  havoc.  We  glean  our  knowledge  of  this 
scourge  of  the  world  from  the  glowing  pages  of 
history,  where  its  fairest  and  boldest  lineaments 
are  depicted ;  and  where,  fascinated  by  the 
brilliant  qualities  of  its  heroes,  we  are  borne 
along  upon  the  swelling  tide  of  the  narrative, 
and  do  not  note  the  dire  details  of  its  devasta- 
tion. The  fire  and  eloquence  of  the  historian 
inspire  us  with  emotions  kindred  to  those  which 
move  the  combatants  themselves.  The  chances 
of  battle, — the  shock,  the  retreat,  the  rally,  the 
rout,  are  delineated  before  our  eyes;  but  the 
clash  of  arms,  the  roar  of  cannon,  the  shout  of 
victory,  drown  the  cry  for  mercy,  the  groan,  the 
death-struggle.  Eager  to  follow  the  current  of 
victory,  we  do  not  pause  upon  the  field  of  battle 
after  its  terrible  splendor  has  passed  away. 
Nor  do  we  linger  in  the  ruined  town  or  deso- 
late hamlet;  nor  walk  the  feverish  hospital, 
crowded  with  the  wounded  and  dying.     It  is 


284  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


but  the  mask,  the  outside  show,  that  we  con- 
template ;  its  deformities  escape  us. 

Let  us  draw  near  to  yonder  field,  canopied 
with  smoke,  as  if,  conscious  of  its  horrors,  it 
would  fain  hide  itself  from  the  light  of  day.  Let 
us  enter  the  veil  where  at  every  step  the  foot 
stumbles  against  a  corpse — heaps  upon  heaps 
they  lie,  son  and  sire,  horse  and  rider,  the  dead 
and  the  dying.  These  are  War's  victims — all 
prostrate,  broken,  and  shivered  to  pieces  under 
the  stroke.  Here,  still  breathing,  is  the  youth 
giving  his  last  thoughts  to  his  mother  and  his 
home.  Yonder  is  the  gray-haired  veteran,  mur- 
muring the  names  of  wife  and  children.  Groans 
here ;  curses  there ;  there  supplications ;  every- 
where agony  and  desolation.  The  living  have 
marched  on  ;  the  dead  and  the  dying  are  left 
where  "  the  eagles  are  gathered  together,"  and 
the  hungry  beasts  of  prey  are  roaming.  No 
kind  hand  is  there  to  staunch  the  flowing  blood, 
to  bathe  the  hot  brow.  They  are  far  from 
home ;  their  burying-place  is  the  plain  where 
they  have  fallen. 

Look  at  the  field  of  Borodino  after  the  dread- 
ful battle  fought  there  by  the  French  and  Rus- 
sians ;  a  surface  of  nine  square  miles  covered 
with  killed  and  wounded ;  eighty  thousand 
men  lying  dead  on  the  field !  Fifty  thousand 
cumbered  the  ground  after  the  battle  of  Ey- 


A  MARTIAL   SPIRIT.  285 


lau;  at  Fontenoy,  a  hundred  thousand!  The 
"Thirty  Years'  War,"  it  is  computed,  reduced 
the  population  of  Germany  from  sixteen  millions 
to  four  millions,  thus  taking  twelve  out  of  every 
sixteen  of  the  inhabitants.  Thirty  thousand  vil- 
lages and  hamlets  were  destroyed  during  the  same 
war,  w  ithout  numbering  cities  and  larger  towns. 
At  the  close  of  the  war  of  1756,  commonly  call- 
ed "  The  War  of  the  Succession,"  twenty 
neighboring  villages  were  found  utterly  destitute 
of  man  or  beast. 

But  to  count  those  who  fell  in  battle  is  to 
number  but  a  trifling  portion  of  the  victims. 
Hardship,  disease,  and  famine,  destroy  more 
than  the  engines  of  battle.  "  War  has  means  of 
destruction,"  says  Dr.  Johnson,  "  more  formi- 
dable than  the  cannon  or  the  sword.  Of  the 
thousands  and  tens  of  thousands  who  perish,  a 
very  small  part  ever  feel  the  stroke  of  the  en- 
emy." It  has  been  computed  by  Edmund 
Burke,  that  thirty-five  thousand  millions  of  the 
human  family  have  fallen  by  war  and  its  attend- 
ant evils — more  than  one-fifth  part  of  the  entire 
race.  And  this  computation  was  made  almost  a 
century  ago.  The  collected  ruins  of  all  the  vic- 
tims which,  in  different  lands,  and  climes,  and 
ages,  have  fallen  before  this  dreadful  scourge, 
would  form  a  pile  raised  to  the  heavens. 


286  THE   MERCY  SEAT. 


"  Each  valley  tells  that  thousands  cease  to  breathe ; 
Death  rides  upon  the  sulphury  Siroc, 
Red  battle  stamps  his  foot,  and  nations  feel  the  shock." 

This  scourge  wears  new  horrors,  when  she 
draws  nigh  the  abodes  of  men.  The  bursting 
shell  is  hurled  amid  the  dwellings  of  peace;  the 
devouring  fires  run  from  roof  to  roof.  Night  and 
day  pour  unceasingly  the  "  iron  shower,"  start- 
ling the  babe,  the  mother,  the  aged.  Famine 
stares  those  in  the  face,  who  till  now  never  knew 
want.  The  hungry  roam  about  the  streets,  cry- 
ing for  food.  The  ties  of  nature  and  of  love 
are  rent  asunder;  hunger  knows  no  mercy. 

The  infuriate  foe,  maddened  by  resistance, 
and  drunk  with  victory,  forces  his  way  into  the 
devoted  city,  plundering  and  murdering  its 
inhabitants,  and  changing  it  into  one  vast 
theatre  of  lust  and  carnage.  Crimes,  dreadful 
to  think  of,  too  horrible  to  name,  are  perpetrated 
where,  a  few  weeks  before,  citizen  walked 
peacefully  with  citizen,  husband  with  wife, 
youth  with  maiden.  The  bonds  of  military  dis- 
cipline are  then  unloosed.  The  very  officers 
then  dare  not  put  their  authority  to  the  test. 
Often,  ins})ired  with  the  basest  passions  them- 
selves, they  do  not  care  to  do  it.  "  Come  again 
in  an  hour,"  replied  Count  Tilly,  tlie  Bavarian 
general,  to  some  officers  who  endeavored  to  per- 
suade him  to  check  the  cruelties  of  his  soldiers, 


A  MARTIAL   SPIRIT.  287 


after  the  storming  of  Magdeberg,  "  come  again  in 
an  hour,  and  I  will  see  what  I  can  do.  The  soldier 
must  have  some  reward  for  his  danger  and  his 
toil."  In  less  than  twelve  hours,  this  populous, 
strong,  great  city,  one  of  the  finest  in  Germany, 
lay  in  ashes,  with  the  exception  of  two  churches 
and  a  few  hovels.  More  than  six  thousand 
corpses  were  thrown  into  the  Elbe,  merely  to 
clear  the  streets  for  the  general's  entrance.  The 
whole  number  of  slain  was  computed  at  thirty 
thousand.  Napoleon,  speaking  of  himself,  says, 
"  Pavia  is  the  only  place  I  ever  gave  up  to  pil- 
lage. I  had  promised  it  to  the  soldiers  for 
twenty-four  hours  ;  but  after  three  hours,  I  could 
bear  it  no  longer,  and  put  an  end  to  it." 

The  waste  of  property  in  war  is  not  easily 
estimated.  The  swords  of  soldiers  reap  the 
harvests;  their  horses'  hoofs  leave  not  an  ear  of 
corn  nor  a  blade  of  grass  for  those  who  sowed 
and  planted,  and  who  might  have  reaped 
in  peace.  The  physical  strength  of  a  nation — • 
its  young  men  and  men  in  the  vigor  of  life — 
is  abstracted  from  useful  and  profitable  em- 
ployment, and  devoted  only  to  augment  the 
amount  of  human  suffering.  The  direct  ex- 
penses of  war  Avould  civilize,  evangelize,  and 
enrich  the  world.  An  able  writer  in  the  eastern 
states  remarks,  that  *'  the  wars  of  the  American 
Revolution  cost  England  six  hundred  millions  of 


288  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


dollars;  that  in  the  wars  occasioned  by  the 
French  Revolution,  she  spent  more  than  Jive 
thousand  millions;''  and  that  "  the  wars  of  Chris- 
tendom, during  only  twenty-two  years,  cost, 
merely  for  their  support,  not  much  less  \\\^\i  fif- 
teen thousand  millions  of  dollars.''' 

But  this  is  not  all.  The  immoral  tendency, 
and  demoralizing  effects  of  war,  more  than  all 
things  else,  show  that  it  is  one  of  the  great 
engines  of  ruin  employed  by  that  subtle  and 
revengeful  Fiend  who  goes  about  to  deceive 
and  destroy  the  nations.  What  multitudes, 
during  a  single  campaign,  surrender  themselves 
to  a  state  of  license  which  is  destructive  of  vir- 
tue and  morality,  and  baneful  to  the  souls  of 
men  !  The  sacred  stillness  of  God's  day  of  holy 
rest  is  disturbed,  churches  are  broken  up,  families 
scattered,  schools  dispersed,  and  courts  of  justice 
not  unfrequently  dissolved.  Conquered  nations 
are  not  wont  to  receive  their  religion  from  their 
conquerors  ;  rather  do  they  imitate  their  vices. 
Falsehood,  rapacity,  cruelty,  sexual  pollution, 
and  every  form  of  irreligion  and  immorality,  are 
the  acknowledged  characteristics  of  an  army  of 
soldiers.  "  We  cannot,"  says  Lord  Clarendon, 
"  make  a  more  lively  representation  and  emblem 
to  ourselves  of  hell,  than  by  the  view  of  a  king- 
dom in  war."  "■  I  abominate  war,"  says  Lord 
Faulkland,  "  as  unchristian.     I  hold  it  to  be  the 


A   MARTIAL   SPIRIT.  289 


greatest  of  human  crimes.  I  deem  it  to  include 
all  others — everything  which  can  deform  the 
character,  alter  the  nature,  and  debase  the 
name  of  man."  "  War,"  says  Robert  Hall, 
"  reverses,  with  respect  to  its  objects,  all  the 
rules  of  morality.  It  is  nothing  less  than  a  tem- 
porary repeal  of  the  principles  of  virtue.  It 
is  a  system  out  of  which  almost  all  the  virtues 
are  excluded,  and  in  which  nearly  all  the  vices 
are  included.  Whatever  renders  human  nature 
amiable,  or  respectable,  whatever  engages  love, 
or  confidence,  is  sacrificed  at  its  shrine."  Nor 
are  these  enormities  limited  to  the  camp,  or  the 
field  of  battle  ;  they  survive  actual  warfare  and 
desolate  the  abodes  of  returning  peace.  "  War 
makes  villains,  and  peace  brings  them  to  the 
gallows."  War  introduces,  in  a  single  year,  a 
series  of  evils,  and  those  habits  and  customs  of 
wickedness,  which  the  gospel  cannot  rectify  and 
remove  in  half  a  century. 

Nor  should  it  be  forgotten,  that  while  war  is 
the  greatest,  it  is  the  most  unblushing  scourge 
inflicted  upon  humanity.  Other  crimes  shun  the 
light,  and  creep  into  holes  and  corners.  This, 
almost  alone,  walks  proudly  abroad  at  noonday, 
parades  its  "  pomp  and  circumstance"  before  the 
eyes  of  the  world,  blazons  its  deeds,  and  boasts 
of  its  victims.  It  invites  the  gaze,  as  if  it  were 
the   benefactor   of  the    human   race,  and  with 

13 


290  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


a  front  of  brass  and  a  tongue  red  with  blood, 
claims  the  honors  due  to  virtue  alone :  as  if  to 
ruin  were  better  than  to  save;  to  destroy,  than 
to  build  up ;  to  lay  waste  the  earth,  than  to  peo- 
ple it,  and  to  till  and  clothe  it  with  verdure  !  If 
war  has  its  glories,  they  are  fearful  glories.  To 
one  who  does  not  look  beyond  the  surface,  it 
may  be  a  thrilling  and  inspiring  spectacle,  to  be- 
hold a  band  of  warriors  advancing,  in  compact 
and  serried  column,  against  the  foe,  closing  up 
their  ranks  as  comrade  falls,  marching  fearlessly 
through  the  storm  of  musketry  and  cannon,  and 
amid  flowing  blood  and  the  crashing  of  human 
bones,  looking  death  in  the  face  with  indiffer- 
ence. We  see  here  a  semblance  of  heroism : 
the  calmness  of  a  resolved  devotedness  and  v%elf- 
sacrifice  meets  the  eye.  We  do  not  see  their 
fury,  their  thirst  for  slaughter.  Just  as  the  re- 
finement of  polished  intercourse  covers  many  a 
crime  with  the  veil  of  grace,  hides  bitter  hatred 
behind  a  smile,  and  scorn  with  the  form  of  cour- 
tesy and  compliment,  so  the  discipline  of  warfare 
has  measured  the  soldier's  step,  regulates  his 
every  motion,  and  restrains  that  impetuous  fury 
which  is  the  natural  expression  pf  his  cruel 
trade.  A  smile  glances  from  eye  to  eye,  a  jest  is 
upon  the  lip ;  but  the  purpose  of  their  heart  is 
butchery.  Their  bright  arms  and  decorations 
flash   in    the    sun ;    their  plumes  wave   to    the 


A   MARTIAL    SPIRIT.  291 


wind ;  but  they  are  about  to  bathe  them  in  hu- 
man blood.  Strip  them  of  tliese  masks,  clothe 
them  in  a  garb  suited  to  their  fearful  mission; 
and  the  eye  is  turned  from  the  scene  in  disgust. 
We  have  but  removed  the  outside  show,  which 
covers  the  reality,  and  behold  them  in  their  true 
deformity.  War  is  not  the  beating  drum,  the 
clashing  cymbal,  the  plume,  the  scarf,  the  em- 
broidered garment.  War  is  the  blow,  the 
wound,  the  agonizing  cry,  the  butchery. 

Modern  warfare  has  the  art  to  cast  a  garb  of 
grandeur,  and  beauty,  and  science,  over  those 
who  perpetrate  her  cruel  deeds.  The  foul- 
est deeds  are  varnished  by  the  fairest  names. 
"  One  murder  makes  a  villain ;  millions  a 
hero."  The  skill  that  winds  the  huge  arms  of 
war  around  a  negligent  foe  is  baptized  by  the 
scientific  name  oi strategy  ;  the  efl'ective  energy 
that  strangles  him  in  their  grasp,  and  that  falls 
crushing  like  a  ponderous  hammer  upon  a  band 
of  human  beings,  is  military  tactics;  the  butch- 
ery of  thousands  is  an  exploit.  But  from  every 
reeking  battle-field  a  voice  comes  to  heaven 
protesting  against  the  glories  of  war.  When 
the  blood  there  shed  is  demanded  at  man's 
hand,  it  is  in  vain  for  him  to  answer,  "  Am  I  my 
brother's  keeper  ?"  And  sad  and  sole  benefit 
of  war !  the  grass  grows  more  luxuriantly  over 
the  mouldering  victims.     As  the  peasant  ploughs 


292  THE   MERCY  SEAT. 


up  the  bones  of  the  slain,  he  smiles  and  thinks 
of  his  harvest — the  richer  for  the  blood  of  battle. 

With  strong  propriety  also  the  question  forces 
itself  upon' us,  Where  will  it  end?  A  child  may 
unchain  a  wild  beast;  but  the  strength  of  many 
men  will  not  bind  him  again.  It  is  easy  to  com- 
mence war,  but  it  is  beyond  the  power  of  man 
to  guide  its  course,  restrain  its  outrage,  or  bring 
it  to  a  successful  issue.  The  voice  of  reason 
makes  but  a  faint  impression  on  minds  infatu- 
ated by  a  war  spirit.  Ambition  is  easily  ripened 
into  anger,  anger  easily  becomes  malevolence, 
and  is  executed  in  revenge.  No  mind  can  cal- 
culate the  next  blow,  no  forethought  predict  the 
extent,  the  progress  of  the  carnage,  w^ien  the 
dark  deed  is  perpetrated  that  first  sheds  human 
blood.  We  cannot  say,  "Thus  fiir  shalt  thou 
go,  and  no  further."  Once  loose  this  demon  of 
desolation,  and  his  ravages  are  beyond  control. 
We  may  weep  rivers  of  sorrow  for  conjuring  up 
the  destroyer,  but  our  regrets  will  not  banish  him. 

It  has  been  said  by  one  of  the  most  distin- 
guished men  in  Great  Britain,  that  in  the  event 
of  a  war  between  that  country  and  the  Uni- 
ted States,  "it  will  be  a  short  war;"  mean- 
ing that  the  whole  strength  of  that  mighty  na- 
tion would  be  exerted  to  crush  us  in  the  outset. 
He  who  uttered  these  words  is  the  most  re- 
nowned  and   indomitable  warrior  of  the  age. 


A   MARTIAL   SPIRIT.  293 


and  one  whose  opinion,  in  matters  which  coa- 
cern  the  military  art,  is  entitled  to  great  weight. 
Yet  he  must  have  strangely  forgotten  the  teach- 
ings of  history,  or  he  never  w^ould  have  ex- 
pressed a  sentiment  so  presumptuous.  Others 
before  him  have  thought  as  arrogantly  as  he, 
and  have  dreamed  of  easy  victories  and  short 
wars,  w'hen  they  were  doomed  to  experience 
defeat  and  disaster  from  an  enemy  they  de- 
spised. Thus  thought  the  Emperor  Leopold; 
thus  thought  Charles  of  Burgundy,  when  with 
their  numerous  hosts  they  advanced  to  attack 
the  ill-armed  Swiss.  But  the  battles  of  Sem- 
pach,  Granson,  and  Marat,  laid  the  pride  of 
their  chivalry  in  the  dust.  When  Prussia  and 
Austria  united  to  force  revolutionary  France  to 
replace  her  king  upon  his  throne,  they  imagined 
that  the  war  would  be  a  short  one.  But  the 
flame  then  kindled  ravaged  Europe  a  quarter  of 
a  century.  England,  Russia,  Spain,  Italy,  Hol- 
land— nay,  every  country  in  Europe  became  in- 
volved in  the  conflict.  Egypt  and  America  felt 
the  shock  of  battle. 

No  man  may  presume  to  say,  that  any  war  will 
be  of  short  duration.  The  delusion  is  extreme. 
The  error  lies  in  miscalculating  the  power  of  the 
war  spirit.  Men  will  make  every  sacrifice  and  run 
every  hazard,  when  once  the  hearts  of  a  whole 
people  are  in  the  conflict.     It  is  not  for  the  pal- 


294  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


try  interests  of  ambition  or  gain,  that  they  con- 
tend. What  motives  of  national  advancement, 
or  individual  profit  would  have  induced  Holland 
to  open  her  dykes,  and  submerge  her  fields  with 
the  waters  of  the  ocean  ?  Yet,  to  resist  the 
haughty  Lewis,  she  called  in  the  raging  sea  to 
stay  the  progress  of  the  invader,  and  freely  gave 
up  her  harvests  and  the  homes  of  her  peasantry 
to  be  pillaged  by  the  waves  ;  while  her  metrop- 
olis stood  an  island  in  the  midst  of  the  surround- 
ing desolation.  Once  arouse  the  w^ar  spirit,  and 
there  is  no  sacrifice  that  is  not  made  readily, 
cheerfully ;  no  danger  that  is  not  braved  with 
joy.  Private  convenience  and  profit,  life  itself, 
are  cast  freely  into  the  scale  in  which  hangs 
trembling  the  questions  of  victory  or  defeat.  If 
overthrown,  like  Antajus,  the  combatants  fall 
upon  their  mother  earth,  and  rise  invigorated 
from  the  contact;  if  defeated,  they  retire  to  the 
fortresses  of  the  hills,  and  rocks,  and  forests; 
there  they  weep  awhile,  and  then  descend 
again  to  the  strife.  The  march  of  war  is  not 
to  be  confined  to  the  wishes  and  plans  of  men. 
Nations  may  be  convulsed,  thrones  and  repub- 
lics overturned,  institutions  long  dear  and  cher- 
ished may  be  levelled  with  the  dust,  ere  peace 
return,  by  her  tardy  process  to  undo  what  war 
has  done.  "  The  beginning  of  strife  is  like  the 
letting  out  of  water."     Universal  desolation  may 


A  MARTIAL   SPIRIT.  296 


cover  the  fairest  land,  crush  its  growing  ener- 
gies, unhinge  the  whole  frame-work  of  society, 
and  cast  it  centuries  backward  in  the  path  of 
civilization,  before  what  many  a  sanguine  tem- 
perament deemed  would  be  a  short  war,  is  ter- 
minated. 

It  may  be  the  peculiar  province  of  tlie  poli- 
tician and  the  statesman  to  instruct  his  fellow- 
men  in  matters  of  political  moment,  and  so  far  as 
it  concerns  their  expediency  and  equity  accord- 
ing to  the  code  of  nations;  but  to  weigh  them  in 
the  balance  of  Christian  justice,  to  test  them  by 
principles  of  expediency  which  concern  the  rela- 
tions of  man  to  his  Maker,  cannot  be  considered 
as  lying  out  of  the  sphere  of  Christianity  itself. 
They  belong  to  Christianity,  and  to  Christianity 
alone. 

And  ivliat  is  Christianity  ?  It  is  the  system  of 
doctrines  and  precepts  taught  by  Christ,  and 
recorded  in  the  Sacred  Writings.  What  is  a 
Christian,  but  a  true  disciple  of  this  divine 
Teacher ;  one  who  believes  these  truths,  obeys 
these  precepts,  imbibes  the  spirit,  and  studies  to 
follow^  the  example  of  his  divine  Master?  Is 
war  consistent  w^ith  these  teachings,  this  spirit, 
this  example  1  Can  it  be  that  we  have  mistaken 
the  nature  of  Christianity,  when  we  say  that  its 
mission  is  a  pacific  mission,  universally  pacific ; 
so  that  just  in  the  proportion  in  which  its  spirit 


296  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


is  imbibed,  and  its  principles  acted  out,  will 
wars  "  cease  unto  the  ends  of  the  earth  ?" 

The  appropriate  influence  of  Christianity, 
upon  all  the  great  questions  of  peace  and  war,  is 
a  subject  in  which  even  monarchical  and  despot- 
ic governments  have  an  interest;  still  more  is  it 
one  in  which  those  lands  ought  to  feel  an  in- 
terest, whose  government  is  of  a  popular  charac- 
ter. Government  is  the  ordinance  of  heaven; 
but  the  w^ay  and  form  in  which  it  is  administer- 
ed, is  of  man's  selection.  The  right  of  the 
strongest  is  a  right  only  wiien  it  is  that  of  the 
best,  and  belongs  but  to  one  Being  in  the  uni- 
verse. The  American  people  are  not  only  a 
free,  but  a  Christian  people.  They  are  not  Pa- 
gan, nor  Mahomedan,  nor  Jewish,  nor  Infidel. 
Our  laws,  and  the  common  consent  of  our  citi- 
zens, recognize  Christianity  as  the  religion  of 
the  land.  Our  Sabbaths,  our  Bibles,  our 
churches,  the  course  of  public  instruction,  the 
form  of  our  judicial  oath,  all  proclaim,  that  as  a 
nation,  we  reverence  the  dictates  of  Christianity, 
and  acknowledge  their  excellence  and  sanctity. 
Our  national  prosperity,  and  the  influence  we 
exert  on  other  lands,  depend  on  our  maintaining 
a  Christian  character.  It  emphatically  becomes 
us,  in  consulting  the  interests  of  our  common, 
country,  and  the  higher  interests  of  the  great 


A  MARTIAL  SPIRIT.  297 


family  of  nations,  to  take  counsel  concerning 
them  as  a  Christian  people. 

With  the  broad  teachings  of  Christianity  be- 
fore me,  I  do  not  see  how  a  belligerent  nation 
can  be  a  Christian  nation.  It  is  a  foul  blot 
upon  the  otherwise  fair  escutcheon  of  some 
professedly  .Christian  lands,  that  they  are  dis- 
tinguished for  their  martial  spirit,  and  their 
love  of  conquest.  God  forbid  that  the  American 
people  should  ever  be  ambitious  of  such  su- 
premacy ! 

Christianity  is  the  law  of  nations,  because  it 
is  the  law  of  God  for  the  government  of  the  na- 
tions, because  it  is  the  law  of  individual  man. 
Never  was  there  a  greater  delusion,  than  that 
what  is  wrong  for  men,  is  right  for  nations.  No 
collective  numbers  of  men  may  disclaim  their 
dependence  on  God,  or  their  responsibility  to 
him,  any  more  than  a  single  individual ;  nor 
have  they  a  right  to  consult  their  own  influence 
and  aggrandizement,  any  more  than  a  single  in^ 
dividual  has  to  do  the  same  thing.  Yet  the  in- 
dividual w^ho  allows  this  to  be  his  ruling  passion, 
is  universally  despised  and  condemned;  while 
there  is  something  so  great  and  imposing  in  the 
spectacle  of  a  nation  thus  exalting  itself,  and  at 
any  hazard,  that  it  is  too  apt  to  be  commended 
even  for  its  most  grasping  ambition.  In  the  sight 
of  God,  "  all  nations  are  as  a  drop  of  a  bucket," 

13* 


298  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


and  he  "  taketli  up  the  islands  as  a  very  little 
thing."  The  many  may  not  do  wrong,  where 
the  few  may  not  do  it.  God  is  the  Governor  of 
the  nations ;  he  holds  them  in  his  hands,  as  clay 
is  in  the  potter's  hand ;  and  just  as  they  make 
his  laws  the  rule  of  their  policy,  or  tread  them 
under  their  feet,  shall  they  become,  the  specta- 
cles of  his  goodness  and  care,  or  read  to  the 
world  the  lessons  of  his  just  vengeance. 

We  cannot  implicitly  subscribe  to  the  views 
of  many  excellent  and  philanthropic  men,  who 
are  persuaded  that  no  emergencies  may  arise, 
when  it  is  right  for  Christians  to  make  the 
solemn  appeal  to  arms.  It  may  not  be  forgotten, 
that  we  cannot  have  a  particular  and  explicit 
declaration  in  the  Bible  for  every  kind  or 
degree  of  national  intercourse,  any  more  than 
for  the  regulation  of  every  circumstance  of  life. 
It  is  the  property  of  every  rational  proposition 
to  lead  to  deductions,  and  to  be  answerable  for 
them.  The  Holy  Scriptures  become  bound  for 
every  inference  fairly  drawn  from  them;  be- 
cause it  is  an  essential  part  of  truth,  that  what  is 
deduced  from  truth,  is  really  so.  Purely  aggres- 
sive wav  is  micrder,  and  subjects  the  perpetrators 
to  the  penalty,  "  Whoso  sheddeth  man's  blood, 
by  man  shall  his  blood  be  shed."  I  need  not 
say,  that  Christianity  will  be  slow  to  perform 
this  work  of  death.     She  will  kneel  long  at  the 


A   MARTIAL    SPIRIT.  299 


mercy  seat,  before  she  dashes  the  last  tear  from 
her  eye,  puts  her  helmet  on,  and  makes  hare 
her  arm  for  war.  Her  appeal  to  the  God  of  bat- 
tles will  be  made  with  fear  and  trembling; 
while  the  arm  that  trembles  before  heaven,  will 
not  be  the  weaker  in  sight  of  the  foe. 

But  this  is  not  the   law   of  Christianity;  it 
is  the  exception  which  the  Author  of  Christian- 
ity has  made  to  his  own  law.     The  spirit  and 
tendencies  of  Christianity  are  all  on  the  other 
side  of  the  question.     "  God  hath  made  of  one 
blood  all  nations  of  men  to  dwell  on  the  face  of 
the  earth."     Born  and  nurtured  they  may  be  in 
different   climes,   governed    by  different   laws, 
speaking  different  languages,  possessing  different 
religions,  and  occupying  different  ranks  among 
the    nations    of    the    earth;   yet   are   they   the 
children  of  the  same  common  parent,  brethren 
of  the  same  common  family.   The  great  God  has 
given  to  them  all,  the  endowments,  the  charac- 
ter, the  susceptibilities,  wants,  and  responsibili- 
ties of  men.     He  has  made  them  mortal,  and 
clothed  them  with  immortality.     He  has  consti- 
tuted their  social  relations,  and  is  himself  the 
Author  of  their  mutual  dependencies.     He  has 
given  them  this  wide  and  beautiful  earth,  as  the 
place  of  their  common  habitation ;  and  the  law 
by   which  he    requires  their  intercourse  to  be 
regulated  is,  that  they  shall  love  and  treat  one 


300  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


another  as  brethren.  Not  more  certainly  are 
the  members  of  the  same  individual  family 
under  obligations  to  express  this  fraternal  spirit, 
than  the  great  family  of  nations.  The  bond  is 
the  same  under  all  the  varieties  of  their  exist- 
ence, and  in  all  the  outward  circumstances  of 
their  history,  in  prosperity  and  adversity,  in 
peace  and  in  war.  "  A  brother  is  born  for  ad- 
versity." The  more  afflictive  and  trying  the 
condition  in  which  our  fellow-men  are  placed  by 
a  wqse  Providence,  the  more  emphatic  is  the  ap- 
peal they  make  to  the  sympathy  and  affection  of 
kindred  spirits,  and  the  more  authoritative  their 
claims  upon  kind  offices  and  kindly  intercourse. 
Events  often  occur  in  the  history  of  nations 
and  of  individuals,  in  which  one  is  the  injuring 
and  the  other  the  injured  party.  And  Chris- 
tianity makes  an  intelligible  and  well-defined 
provision  for  this  exigency.  Her  mandate  is, 
"  Forgiving  one  another,  even  as  God,  for 
Christ's  sake,  hath  forgiven  you."  The  spirit 
of  this  mandate  is  widely  extended;  it  is  ex- 
tended to  man,  as  man — even  to  the  worst  of 
men,  and  those  who  bitterly  persecute  us.  It 
is  not  limited  to  trivial  offences ;  nor  to  those 
that  are  inadvertently  committed ;  nor  to  those 
that  are  few.  "Seventy  times  seven"  if  our 
brother  offend  us,  "  and  turn  again,  and  say,  I 
repent;"  so  far  from  retaliating  the  injury,  we 


A  MARTIAL   SPIRIT.  301 


are  to  suppress  every  malevolent  emotion,  de- 
sire his  welfare,  and  treat  him  with  kindness. 
Circumstances  often  occur  in  which  individuals 
and  communities  become  avowed  enemies  ;  and 
Christianity  makes  an  expressed  provision  for 
such  an  exigency  when  she  says,  "  Love  your 
enemies ;  bless  them  that  curse  you ;  do  good 
to  them  that  hate  you."  This  is  the  great 
characteristic  of  Christianity ;  and  where  it  is 
possessed  and  acted  out,  is  a  most  edifying  and 
beautiful  exemplification  of  its  power.  "  A 
brother  offended  is  harder  to  be  won  than  a 
strong  city,  and  their  contentions  are  like  the 
bars  of  a  castle."  But  bad  as  the  world  is,  the 
man,  or  the  nation  that  conducts  itself  thus  be- 
nevolently, meekly,  generously,  disarms  the  op- 
position of  its  fiercest  foe. 

Nor  is  it  simply  by  such  implications  as  these, 
that  Christianity  reveals  itself  as  the  religion  of 
peace.  Does  it  speak  of  the  great  God  ;  he  is 
"  the  God  of  peace  :"  of  the  gracious  Redeemer; 
he  is  "  the  Prince  of  peace  :"  of  the  holy  Sancti- 
fier ;  he  is  "  the  Spirit  of  peace  :"  of  its  own 
great  ends  and  objects;  they  are  *'  glory  to  God 
in  the  highest,  peace  on  earth,  and  good  will  to 
men."  Its  doctrines  are  doctrines  of  peace ; 
its  precepts  are  precepts  of  peace  ;  its  promises 
are  to  the  peacemakers,  its  penalties  for  the 
proud,  the  malicious,   and  the   revengeful.     It 


302  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


does  not  form  men  of  contention;  the  essential 
elements  of  contention  must  be  souglit  for  else- 
where. It  is  not  the  febrile,  agitating,  angry 
spirit  of  war ;  this  spirit  comes  from  another 
quarter.  It  is  not  an  overweening  jealousy  of 
our  own  rights,  nor  the  wrangling  and  violence 
which  maintains  them.  It  is  not  a  rigid  exac- 
tion for  every  v^-rong.  It  is  the  spirit  of  amity, 
conciliation,  and  mutual  forbearance.  War  has 
but  a  narrow  space  in  such  a  code  ;  its  lessons 
are  lessons  of  peace.  And  the  glory  of  them  all 
is  their  universal  adaptation  to  man ;  to  man  in 
his  social,  as  well  as  his  individual  relations;  to 
man  all  over  the  world.  What  a  remedy  for 
all  the  malevolence,  envy,  love  of  conquest, 
pride,  contention,  sullenness,  revenge,  and  all 
the  arts,  and  subtleties,  and  sophistry  of  war- 
like diplomacy,  is  the  pure,  honest,  affectionate, 
and  forbearing  spirit  of  Christianity  ! 

War  is  a  subject  on  which  Christianity  has 
thoughts  which  she  cannot  conceal,  and  words 
which  she  may  not  suppress.  She  has  tears 
which  she  sheds  in  secret  places  for  the  pride 
of  man,  and  for  the  honor  of  God.  She  had  fondly 
hoped  that  the  barbarous  and  iron  age  of  the 
world  had  gone  by,  and  that  his  reign  under 
whom  "  the  mountains  shall  bring  peace  to  the 
people,  and  the  little  hills  by  righteousness" 
would  effectually  hold  in    check    the  warlike 


A  MARTIAL   SPIRIT.  303 


passions  of  men.  Nor  is  this  a  hope  she  will 
easily  relinquish.  The  aspect  of  the  world  has 
changed  during  the  present  century.  Civiliza- 
tion has  advanced  with  rapid  strides,  and  almost 
every  relic  of  barbarism  is  disappearing  from  the 
face  of  the  earth.  The  Bible  is  dispersed  over 
the  nations;  the  glorious  gospel  of  the  ever 
blessed  God  is  being  proclaimed  to  every  crea- 
ture;  science  and  the  arts  are  uniting  with 
Christian  philanthropy  in  the  noblest  and  most 
successful  efforts  to  meliorate  the  condition  of 
mankind,  and  everything  seems  pointing  for- 
ward to  the  true  "golden  age."  Christian 
men,  with  exceptions  that  rarely  occur,  have 
nothing  to  do  with  war.  Why  should  they 
have  ?  Has  its  nature  changed  ?  Is  it  less  ter- 
rible ?  Is  it  no  longer  the  monster  whose  path 
lies  across  ruin  and  desolation,  whose  breath  is 
pestilence,  and  whose  glance  is  death  ?  Is  it  no 
longer  merciless,  iron-hearted  ?  Is  it  no  longer 
a  lapper  of  blood  ?  Would  to  God  that  it 
were  so !  Even  in  our  age,  of  every  acquisi- 
tion iu  science,  war  appropriates  some  part  to 
herself.  She  has  become  cunning  and  curi- 
ous in  the  art  of  destruction.  Deadly  engines 
are  framed,  clothed  with  terrors  hitherto  un- 
known, vieing  with  each  other  in  their  aptness 
for  extermination.  Furnished  with  these,  vi^ar- 
like  nations  will  contend  with  new  fury,  the 


304  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


victims  will  be  more  numerous,  the  work  more 
thorough  and  sure. 

I  look  upon  the  Christian  church  as  a  divinely 
organized  society  for  the  promotion  of  peace. 
She  is,  or  rather  she  ought  to  be,  the  most  ef- 
fective Peace  Society  in  the  world.  Let  her 
cultivate  the  spirit  of  peace,  and  show  by  her 
own  spirit,  and  prayers,  and  deportment,  and 
influence,  that  she  has  no  sympathy  with  that 
love  of  conquest  and  false  honor  which  have 
fdled  the  world  with  carnage.  If  it  must  be  so, 
let  her  rather  consent  to  be  dishonored,  than 
cease  to  be  humane.  Let  her  be  callous  rather 
to  disgrace,  than  to  human  suffering.  "Them 
that  honor  me,  I  will  honor."  The  church  of 
God  has  nothing  to  fear  by  her  firm  and  invinci- 
ble attachment  to  peace.  Even  a  conquered 
nation  may  be  the  most  honored,  while  her  con- 
queror is  most  despised.  "  After  much  occasion 
to  consider,"  says  Benjamin  Franklin,  "the  folly 
and  mischiefs  of  a  state  of  warfare,  and  the 
little  or  no  advantage  obtained  even  by  those 
nations  who  have  conducted  it  with  the  most 
success,  I  am  apt  to  think  there  never  has  been, 
nor  ever  will  he,  any  such  thing  as  a  good  war,  or 
a  bad  peace." 

It  may  be  arrogance  in  the  writer  of  a  religious 
Book  to  address  himself  to  those  whom  the 
providence  of  God  has  elevated  to  power.    "  Be 


A  MARTIAL   SPIRIT.  306 


wise,  O  ye  kings ;  be  instructed,  ye  judges  of 
the  earth !"  Be  admonished  of  the  vast  inter- 
est which  the  God  of  heaven  has  trusted  to  your 
hands.  Trifle  not  with  the  sacred  pledge  your 
country  has  committed  to  your  care ;  nor  peril 
its  prosperity  from  motives  that  will  not  bear 
the  scrutiny  of  impartial  justice.  The  fearful 
reckoning  must  be  paid  to  the  utmost  farthing. 
You  "  must  die  like  men,  and  fall  like  one  of 
the  princes."  Nor  will  it  be  any  grief  of  heart 
to  you  to  be  able  to  say  on  your  bed  of  death, 
"  I  have  made  few  orphans  in  my  reign;  I  have 
made  few  widows ;  my  object  has  been  peace ! 
This  has  been  the  Christianity  of  my  throne, 
and  this  the  gospel  of  my  sceptre."  "  Blessed 
are  the  peacemakers ;  for  they  shall  be  called 
the  children  of  God." 

To  men  of  ambition  and  blood,  the  Lord's 
Prayer  must  be  a  senseless  service.  These  hum- 
ble pages  will  not  fall  in  the  way  of  such  men. 
Eternity  alone  can  make  a  full  disclosure  of 
their  guilt  and  baseness  wiio  do  not  hesitate  to 
advance  their  own  political,  or  private  ends  by 
Wiir.  Men  who  would  raise  the  sluice  through 
which  a  torrent  of  blood  may  flow,  that  upon 
the  deluge  of  gore  the  paltry  bark  that  bears 
their  interests  and  ambition  may  settle  upon  the 
high  places,  deserve  to  be  the  execrated  of 
their  race.     Let  them  renounce  the   name   of 


M 


306  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


men.  Let  them  wander  out  with  the  Savage, 
who  owns  no  common  law  of  humanity,  to  whom 
cruelty  is  a  virtue,  and  the  scalps  of  their  fel- 
low-beings badges  of  distinction!  Let  them 
go  with  the  first  murderer,  "  fugitives  and  vaga- 
bonds in  the  earth !" 

On  no  subject  does  the  tone  of  public  senti- 
ment need  to  be  changed,  more  than  on  the 
subject  of  war.  I  verily  believe,  that  on  this 
matter,  the  minds  of  men  have  for  ages  been  un- 
der the  power  of  the  Prince  of  Darkness.  His 
throne  is  on  the  battle-field  :  glory  and  dishonor, 
victories  and  defeats,  are  alike  the  conquests  of 
his  empire.  There  his  power  is  felt,  and  his  au- 
thority acknowledged ;  and  they  are  no  other 
than  the  power  and  authority  of  "  that  old  ser- 
pent, the  devil,  and  Satan,  who  deceiveth  the 
whole  worldr  The  maxims  of  war  are  his  max- 
ims ;  the  laws  of  war  are  his  laws.  War  has 
become  the  custom  of  the  nations,  because  he  is 
"  the  god  of  this  world."  It  were  difficult  to  ac- 
count for  the  inveterate  force  of  such  a  custom, 
upon  principles  of  mere  unincited  and  undirect- 
ed wickedness.  Man  is  not  naturally  cruel. 
This  arch  Enemy  well  knows,  that  the  habits 
of  a  nation  are  its  laws,  and  how  hopeless  is  the 
task  of  attacking  them. 

Yet  shall  this  antiquated  custom  pass  away. 
Supreme  dominion  is  with  the  "  God  of  peace;" 


A  MARTIAL   SPIRIT.  307 


and  therefore  this  hideous  custom  of  war,  with 
the  superstitions  and  corruptions  of  all  false 
religions,  shall  pass  away.  His  Gospel  aims 
a  blow  at  the  root  of  all  those  passions  and  lusts 
of  men,  whence  "  wars  and  fightings"  come.  It 
is  not  less  true  that  it  has  mitigated  the  horrors 
of  war,  than  that  it  is  destined  to  exterminate  this 
prolific  and  bitter  root  of  evil  from  among  men. 
Let  the  men  of  peace,  then,  take  courage.  The 
proclamation  is  gone  forth,  "Why  do  the  heathen 
rage,  and  the  people  imagine  a  vain  thing  ?  I 
have  set  my  king  upon  my  holy  hill  of  Zion." 
"  Of  the  increase  of  his  government,  and  peace, 
there  shall  be  no  end."  "  The  righteous  shall 
flourish,  and  abundance  of  peace,  so  long  as  the 
moon  endureth." 


CHAPTER   XIV. 


TEMPTATION    DEPLORED. 


"tu][  m  nnt  into  '(i^tni|itntiDn." 

There  are  not  wanting  those  who  impugn  the 
doctrine  of  pardon,  as  relaxing  the  obligations  to 
practical  godliness.  To  say  nothing  of  the  ab- 
surdity of  this  slander,  upon  other  grounds,  it  is 
an  interesting  fact,  that  in  immediate  sequence 
to  the  request  for  pardoning  mercy,  the  Saviour 
puts  into  the  lips  of  his  disciples  another,  grow- 
ing out  of  and  dictated  by  the  spirit  of  the  former, 
the  object  of  wdiich  is  to  quicken  and  sustain 
their  tenderness  of  conscience,  and  excite  un- 
sleeping vigilance  in  view  of  enticements  to  evil. 
"  Forgive  us  our  debts,  as  we  forgive  our  debt- 
ors ;  and  lead  us  not  into  temptation !  "The  sup- 
pliant is  not  to  expect  pardon,  aside  from  his 
desires  after  holiness.  The  stronger  the  assur- 
ance he  has  of  his  own  gracious  state,  the  more 
earnest  are  his  supplications  for  preventing 
grace.     Just  in  the  measure  in  which  he  clings 


TEMPTATION   DEPLORED.  309 


to  the  Lord  Jesus,  as  his  only  hope,  is  he  con- 
scious of  this  hallowed  work  of  the  Spirit  in  his 
own  heart.  Admitted  to  the  divine  fellowship, 
and  with  an  open  door  into  the  holiest  of  all  set 
before  him,  it  is  most  congenial  to  all  the  affec- 
tions of  his  renewed  nature,  to  distrust  himself, 
and  take  refuge  in  the  watchful  care,  the  pre- 
venting providence,  and  the  restraining  grace, 
of  his  Father  who  is  in  heaven. 

"  He  knoweth  our  frame  ;  he  remembereth 
that  w^e  are  but  dust."  He  who  included  the 
request,  "  Lead  us  not  into  temptation,"  in  the 
compend  of  prayer  to  be  daily  offered  by  his 
disciples  in  every  age  of  the  world,  must  have 
known  what  is  in  man.  It  is  a  request  indited 
wdth  wonderful  wisdom  ;  a  request  so  constantly, 
so  universally  needed,  and  comes  home  so 
closely  to  every  man's '' business  and  bosom;" 
that  we  know  not  wiiich  the  more  to  admire, 
its  matchless  wisdom,  or  its  ineffable  sympathy 
and  tenderness. 

Plain  Christians,  as  well  men  of  a  more  philo- 
sophical turn  of  mind,  have,  as  it  appears  to  us, 
been  sometimes  perplexed  by  the  language  of 
this  request.  The  Holy  God  is  no  tempter.  He 
never  corrupts  men ;  never  flatters  ;  never  de- 
ceives ;  never  acts  the  part  of  a  seducer;  never 
entices  to  evil.  He  makes  no  promises,  and 
offers  no  bribes  with  the  view  of  inducing  them 


310  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


to  do  wrong.  The  word  tempt  has  tw^o  signifi- 
cations ;  one  is  to  entice  to  evil,  the  other  to 
try,  or  put  to  trial.  The  latter  he  does,  the 
former  is  abhorrent  to  His  nature.  That  pure 
and  holy  mind  has  no  art,  no  craft,  or  cunning ; 
but  the  most  perfect  and  transparent  honesty. 
He  everywhere  forbids  sin,  condemns,  reproves, 
and  punishes  it;  nor  do  his  purposes  or  his 
providence,  when  rightly  understood,  ever  hold 
a  different  language  from  this  uniform  spirit  of 
his  moral  government.  Nor  is  he  in  any  way 
"  the  author,  or  approver  of  sin."  "  Let  no  man 
say,  when  he  is  tempted,  I  am  tempted  of  God; 
for  God  cannot  be  tempted  with  evil,  neither 
tempteth  he  any  man."  Ever  since  sin  entered 
into  the  universe,  he  has  done  everything  com- 
patible with  his  own  perfections  to  restrain  and 
suppress  it ;  to  reclaim  and  restore  fallen  man. 

But  while  he  never  tempts  men  in  the  sense 
of  seducing  them  to  evil,  he  tries  them,  and 
throws  them  into  circumstances  in  which  their 
character  is  put  to  the  test.  His  government 
is  universal,  and  extends  to  everything.  "  He 
worketh  all  things  after  the  counsel  of  his  own 
will."  His  providence,  which  is  nothing  less 
than  "  his  most  holy,  wise,  and  powerful  preserv- 
ing and  governing  all  his  creatures  and  all  their 
actions,"  is  the  counterpart  of  his  purposes,  and 
the  agency  by  which  they  are  accomplished. 


TEMPTATION   DEPLORED.  311 


He  has,  therefore,  a  control  over  all  those  events 
that  exert  an  influence  on  the  character  and 
conduct  of  men.  He  is  concerned  in  their  sin- 
ful conduct,  in  that  for  wise  and  holy  ends  he 
permits  it,  "  suffering  all  nations  to  walk  on  in 
their  own  ways ;"  in  that  he  limits  and  restraiiis 
it,  as  it  is  w  ritten,  "  The  wrath  of  man  shall 
praise  thee,  and  the  remainder  of  WTath  shalt 
thou  restrain;""  and  in  that  he  so  governs  and 
directs  it,  in  order  to  make  it  subserve  great  and 
important  results,  so  that  while  its  perpetrators 
"  think  it  unto  evil,  God  means  it  unto  good." 

Nor  could  we  have  any  consolation  in  view 
of  the  w  ickedness  of  man,  but  for  the  precious 
truth  that  the  providence  of  God  is  thus  con- 
cerned in  it  all.  Nor  is  there  any  evidence  that 
the  designs  of  God,  either  in  regard  to  the 
church,  or  the  world,  could  be  accomplished, 
nor  that  the  wickedness  of  man  would  not 
ultimately  prevail  and  triumph ;  had  we  not 
the  assurance  that  the  Lord  God  omnipotent 
thus  universally  reigns.  This  every  good  man 
knows  and  feels,  and  recognizes  in  his  prayers ; 
and  it  is  his  happiness  and  joy  so  to  do.  There 
is  a  controlling  power  above  him,  which  nothing 
else  controls ;  a  supreme  and  universal  provi- 
dence over  all  his  course  ;  one  at  whose  disposal 
are  all  creatures  and  all  events,  and  in  whose 
hands  are  all  those  alternations  and  varieties  of 


312  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


incident  and  circumstance  which  exert  such 
prodigious  power  in  forming  his  character. 

These  principles  and  facts  show  us  how  God 
may  tempt  men,  without  seducing  them  to  sin, 
and  without  compromising  his  own  rectitude  and 
goodness.  He  may  try  them  ;  he  may  put  their 
integrity  to  the  proof.  He  may  even  permit 
others  to  seduce  them ;  and  he  himself  may 
place  them  in  circumstances  which  shall  devel- 
op their  true  character,  show  them  and  others 
what  is  in  their  hearts,  make  them  feel  their  de- 
pendence, and  lead  them,  by  unexpected  dis- 
coveries of  their  sinfulness,  to  "  go  softly  all 
their  years." 

Nor  is  there  any  doubt  that  he  does  this,  and 
in  various  ways.  Some  he  tries  by  the  vigor, 
and  others  by  the  imbecility  of  their  physical 
constitution  and  intellectual  capacity.  Some  by 
health,  and  others  by  sickness;  some  by  wealth, 
and  others  by  poverty.  Some  by  the  adulation 
of  their  fellow-men,  and  some  by  their  neglect 
and  reproach.  Some  by  those  exposures  which 
address  themselves  to  an  ardent  and  sanguinary 
temperament,  and  some  by  those  that  assail  the 
more  dull  and  phlegmatic.  Some  by  the  office 
they  hold,  the  titles  they  bear,  and  the  services 
they  render  to  their  fellow-men.  Some  by  the 
place  of  their  residence,  the  usages  and  habits  of 
the  society  which  surrounds  them,  the  counsel 


TEMPTATION   DEPLORED.  313 


of  their  advisers,  and  the  varied  success  of  their 
secular  enterprises.  These  things  bring  out  mo- 
tives, and  discover  secret  springs  of  action. 
They  bring  to  light  easily-besetting  sins ;  and 
though  many  of  them  seem  to  be  of  very  trivial 
moment,  they  show  the  utter  uncertainty  of  all 
human  calculations,  and  how  absolutely  the 
character,  as  well  as  the  destiny  of  men,  is  in  the 
hands  of  God. 

All  the  changes  that  men  meet  with  are  trials 
of  their  character.  Nero  was  a  very  different 
man  while  the  pupil  of  Seneca,  from  what  he 
was  as  the  Emperor  of  Rome.  Solomon  was  a 
very  different  man  in  the  early  part  of  his  reign, 
from  what  he  was  in  those  voluptuous  periods 
of  his  history,  during  which  he  brought  such  re- 
proach upon  the  throne.  Men  do  not  know 
themselves.  Hazael  the  subject  was  a  very 
different  man  from  Hazael  the  prince.  Who 
would  have  thought  the  youthful  Mary,  the 
Queen  of  England,  the  translator  of  the  Gospels, 
would  ever  have  deserved  the  appellation  of  the 
"  bloody  Mary  ?"  Who  would  have  supposed 
that  Robespierre,  once  so  sensitive  to  the  suffer- 
ings of  his  fellow-men,  that  he  resigned  a  lucra- 
tive office  under  the  government,  rather  than 
condemn  a  culprit  to  the  scaffold,  would  have 
filled  Paris  with  blood  ;  or  that  William  Dodd, 
once  so  celebrated  for  his  usefulness  as  a  minister 

14 


314  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


of  Christ,  would  have  been  executed  at  Tyburn, 
for  forgery  ?  Sometimes  a  mere  change  of 
place,  an  unexpected  conflict  with  an  individual 
or  a  party,  an  unhappy  alliance  in  business,  or 
an  unlooked-for  alteration  in  public  affairs, 
proves  a  touchstone  to  the  character,  before 
which  truth  and  integrity  wither,  and  gives 
a  blow  to  the  spirit  of  self  confidence,  which  is 
never  so  renewed  that  the  sufferer  can  lift  up  his 
face  before  the  world.  Sometimes  these  very 
incidents  result  in  a  well-tested  integrity  and 
honor,  prepare  those  who  endure  the  trial  for 
still  severer  conflicts,  and  furnish  them  for  exem- 
plary toil  and  sacrifices.  They  had  this  effect 
upon  Abraham,  Joseph,  Nehemiah,  Job,  Jeremi- 
ah, Daniel,  Paul,  and  thousands  of  others  in  later 
times. 

The  entire  providence  of  God,  and  the  history 
of  every  man  in  the  world,  if  minutely  inspected, 
will  be  found  to  be  a  series  of  temptations  pe- 
culiarly adapted  to  his  character.  "  I  have  led 
thee,"  says  God,  to  the  generation  of  Israel  in 
the  desert,  "  I  have  led  thee  these  forty  years  in 
the  wilderness,  to  prove  thee,  and  to  humble  thee, 
and  to  see  what  is  in  thine  heart,  and  whether 
thou  wouldest  keep  my  commandments,  or  no." 
He  well  knows  how  thus  to  try  and  prove  men, 
and  bring  out  their  whole  hearts.  They  see  the 
objects,  and  witness  the  scenes  and  changes  by 


TEMPTATION   DEPLORED. 


315 


which  he  is  trying  them;  but  they  are  not  al- 
ways sensible  of  his  design,  nor,  indeed,  melan- 
choly to  confess,  do  they  always  acknowledge 
his  overruling  hand.  "Thou  art  a  God  that 
hidest  thyself,  O  God  of  Israel  the  Saviour!" 
Some  of  these  tests  are  more  severe  than  others, 
and  men  are  on  their  guard  against  them ;  while 
of  most  of  them  they  seem  to  have  no  ap- 
prehension, and  therefore  walk  on  in  darkness. 
This  searching  process  is  all  the  while  going  on, 
but  they  are  unconscious  of  it.  The  trial 
may  be  designed  to  bring  into  exercise,  im- 
prove, and  make  manifest  rare  graces  and 
virtues,  so  that  "  the  trial  of  their  faith"  may  be 
to  praise,  and  honor,  and  glory ;"  and  it  maij 
show  them  their  weakness,  and  cover  them  with 
shame  and  sackcloth. 

No  one  can  truly  adopt  the  language,  "  lead 
us  not  into  temptation,"  who  does  not  possess 
the  fear  and  hatred  of  sin.  The  world  in  which 
we  live  abounds  with  seductive  influences.  It  is 
no  sin  to  be  tempted,  unless  we  solicit  the  temp- 
tation. Good  men  are  afraid  of  it,  because  they 
are  afraid  of  sin.  This  deep  and  inwrought  sen- 
timent is  one  of  the  great  incentives  to  this  par- 
ticular request;  for  if  the  enticements  to  sin 
were  not  likely  to  lead  us  astray,  there  would  be 
no  use  in  the  petition. 

There  are  those  who  are  greatly  exposed  to 


316  THE   MERCY  SEAT. 


sin,  and  who  have  strongly  besetting  sins,  who 
never  pray  that  they  may  not  be  tempted  to 
commit  them;  and  the  reason  is,  they  have  no 
abhorrence  of  these  sins.  It  gives  great  em- 
phasis to  such  a  request  as  this,  to  have  deep 
impressions  of  the  evil  and  odious  nature  of  all 
sin.  If  we  make  light  of  sin,  w^e  shall  make 
light  of  temptation.  One  of  the  most  subtle 
temptations  is  that  which  would  fain  induce  us 
to  believe  that  it  is  a  small  matter  to  sin  as'ainst 
God.  An  enlightened  and  tender  conscience, 
and  much  more  a  heart  renewed  by  grace, 
looks  upon  sin  as  deadly  poison.  However 
small,  it  is  the  "  cockatrice's  egg,'^  and  will 
"  break  out  into  a  viper."  Every  man  is  tempt- 
ed when  he  "  is  drawn  away  by  his  own  lusts 
and  enticed.^  Then  when  lust  hath  conceived, 
it  bringeth  forth  sin ;  and  sin  when  it  is  finished, 
bringeth  forth  death."  And  it  is  no  abortion, 
but  vigorous,  full-grown  death.  Just  as  one  w^ho 
has  experienced  the  agony  of  bodily  suffering, 
prays  as  no  other  man  can  pray,  to  be  delivered 
from  pain,  so  does  he  who  knows  by  experience 
the  evil  of  sinning,  pray  as  no  other  man  can 
pray,  that  he  may  not  be  led  into  temptation. 
Such  a  man  is  afraid  of  the  opportunity  of  sin- 
ning ;  his  daily  prayer  is  that  he  may  not  be 
thrown  in  t!^e  way  of  it.  There  is  no  surer 
sign  of  a  man's  ignorance  of  himself,  than  his 


TEMPTATION   DEPLORED.  317 


unwillingness  to  admit  the  power  of  temptation. 
A  cautious  Christian  has  lost  his  self-confident 
courage,  and  seeks  rather  for  preservatives  from 
sin,  than  for  occasions  to  prove  his  steadfastness. 
He  solicits  rather  that  God  would  circumvent 
him  by  his  providence,  and  on  every  side  mul- 
tiply and  increase  the  obstacles  and  difficulties 
in  his  way  of  sinning,  than  suffer  him  to  fall 
into  temptation. 

The  man  who  offers  this  request  with  a  be- 
coming spirit,  contemplates  his  exposure.  The 
world  is  full  of  those  who  have  been  led  away 
by  temptation,  who,  before  they  were  led 
astray,  w^ould  have  said  that  it  could  have  had 
no  influence  upon  them.  Most  of  the  boasting 
among  men  proceeds  from  the  want  of  being 
tried.  "  He  that  trusteth  to  his  own  heart  is  a 
fool."  The  spirit  of  self-confidence  runs  into 
temptation ;  it  even  tempts  God.  It  should 
never  be  forgotten  that  a  pardoned  sinner  is  not 
past  all  peril.  "  Watch  and  pray,"  says  the 
Saviour,  "that  ye  enter  not  into  temptation; 
the  spirit  indeed  is  willing,  but  the  flesh  is 
weak." 

This  exposure  to  sin  arises  principally  from 
the  following  sources.  In  every  human  being 
this  side  the  grave,  there  is  a  melancholy  ten- 
dency to  evil.  To  whatever  extent  this  innate 
tendency  to  wickedness  may  be  counteracted, 


318  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


it  is  always  in  opposition  to  the  strong  natural 
bias  of  the  mind.  His  own  heart  is  his  strong- 
est tempter.  The  system  is  a  false  one,  that  it 
is  as  easy  for  a  man  to  do  right  as  to  do  wrong. 
Left  to  himself,  he  is  "  wise  to  do  evil,  and  to 
do  good  he  has  no  knowledge."  Even  after 
every  restraint  and  every  influence,  every  in- 
ducement presented  in  the  word  of  God,  and 
even  large  measures  of  his  grace,  he  utterly 
fails  to  subdue  the  power  of  "  sin  that  dwelleth 
in  him."  He  may  feel  that  sin  is  a  burden,  and 
yet  commit  it.  His  conscience  may  be  wrung 
with  anguish  in  view  of  past  sins,  while  this  is 
no  security  that  he  may  not  commit  them  in 
time  to  come.  He  may  form  resolutions  of 
new  obedience  every  day  he  lives,  and  still  live 
to  groan  under  the  body  of  sin  and  death.  His 
very  desires  and  efforts  to  mortify  and  subdue 
his  corruptions,  furnish  him  with  affecting  indi- 
cations of  their  power.  Rarely  does  he  go  to 
the  throne  of  grace,  but  he  feels  the  severity  of 
the  conflict,  and  complains  of  his  moral  corrup- 
tion. It  is  a  mournful  truth,  that  "  the  heart  is 
deceitful  above  all  things,  and  desperately 
wicked" — wicked  to  project  and  perpetrate 
everything  that  is  vile,  when  once  all  restraints 
are  removed  and  strong  temptation  is  present 
to  the  mind.  No  man  knows  what  he  may  be 
left  to  do;  nor  what  "  earthly,  sensual,  devilish" 


TEMPTATION   DEPLORED.  3li9 


device  may  find  a  place  in  some  of  the  secret 
folds  of  his  deeply  imbedded  wickedness. 

The  source  of  his  exposure  is  not  a  blinded 
understanding  merely ;  nor  a  faithless  con- 
science, nor  a  treacherous  memory,  nor  a  per- 
verted judgment,  nor  a  wild,  polluted,  and  in- 
cited imagination,  nor  the  want  of  experience ; 
but  a  corrupted  heart.  This  is  the  weak  spot, 
the  sore  spot,  the  deadly  plague  in  the  human 
character.  He  knows  little  of  himself  that  does 
not  know  this  melancholy  truth. 

Nor  is  this  all.  With  such  a  heart  as  this, 
he  is  destined  to  live  in  a  world  of  sin  and 
snares,  where,  whatever  his  condition  may  be, 
he  is  tempted  on  every  side.  He  is  exposed 
from  the  men  of  the  world  and  the  things  of 
the  world ;  from  friends  and  foes  ;  at  home  and 
abroad  ;  from  the  untender  walk  of  Christians, 
and  from  the  bolder  corruptions  of  the  wicked  ; 
from  what  he  sees  and  hears,  enjoys  and  suf- 
fers. He  is  exposed  sometimes  from  too  retired, 
and  sometimes  from  too  social  a  spirit,  and 
amid  communications  that  are  as  contagious  as 
they  are  unavoidable.  He  is  exposed,  where 
he  least  suspects  it,  and  from  his  very  insensi- 
bility to  exposure,  insensibly  and  deceitfully 
conducting  him  from  one  sin  to  another,  till  he 
stands  on  the  brink  of  the  precipice,  and  w^on- 
ders  he  has  not  made  the  fearful  leap  into  the 


320  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


abyss  below.  His  mind  becomes  familiarized 
with  evil ;  and  before  he  is  aware  of  it,  his 
principles  become  shaken,  his  faith  shivers  in 
the  wind,  and  his  frail  bark  is  tossed  on  the 
dark,  angry  sea. 

Just  as  matter  acts  upon  matter,  so  mind  acts 
upon  mind.  Disastrous  revolutions  are  effected 
in  the  moral  world  by  the  contact  of  minds ; 
nor  is  it  at  all  to  be  wondered  at,  that  spiritual 
life  should  be  jeoparded  in  a  world  that  *'  lieth 
in  wickedness." 

There  is  a  Great  Deceiver,  too,  who  is  not 
only  permitted  to  have  the  power,  but  is  long 
practised  in  the  arts  of  seduction.  We  "  are 
not  ignorant  of  his  devices."  He  knows  where 
and  when  the  people  of  God  are  most  vulner- 
able. There  is  no  dark  chamber  in  the  under- 
standing, no  unguarded  outpost  in  the  con- 
science, no  defective  spot  in  the  heart,  which 
he  has  not  his  eye  upon,  and  to  which  he  is  not 
fertile  in  expedients  to  find  access.  He  sports 
with  the  understanding,  and  would  fain  tempt 
to  the  belief  that  there  is  no  religion  revealed 
from  heaven,  no  hereafter,  no  God.  He  sports 
with  the  conscience,  and  would  fain  tempt  to 
the  belief  that  sin  is  a  little  matter ;  that  the 
threatenings  of  God  are  unduly  severe  ;  that 
nothing  is  jeoparded  by  a  single  deviation  from 
duty  ;  that  others  have  sinned  and  found  mercy ; 


TEMPTATION  DEPLORED,  321 


and  that  there  can  be  no  great  peril  in  sinning 
if  such  transgressors  as  Noah  and  Lot,  David 
and  Solomon,  Peter  and  the  thief  on  the  cross, 
were  pardoned  offenders.  He  sports  with  the 
imagination,  painting  in  gaudy  colors  the  delights 
of  the  ambitious  in  the  hope  of  elevation,  of  the 
avaricious  in  their  anticipations  of  wealth,  of 
the  voluptuous  in  the  revelings  of  their  impur- 
ity. He  sports  with  the  heart,  adapting  his  se- 
ductions to  every  age,  every  constitutional  in- 
firmity, every  condition  and  exigency,  every 
employment  and  relation  in  life,  every  hope  and 
fear,  every  opinion  and  prejudice,  every  expos- 
ure, every  season  of  rashness,  and  every  former 
sin.  There  is  no  form  of  sinning  which  he  fails 
to  exhibit  in  its  most  alluring  attractions.  It  is 
"  fruit  greatly  to  be  desired  and  pleasant  to  the 
eye  ;"  the  deed  is  soon  forgotten,  and  never  de- 
tected ;  it  is  the  best  if  not  the  only  means  of 
realizing  expectations  to  which  have  been  devo- 
ted years  of  otherwise  fruitless  toil. 

There  are  three  things,  among  others,  which 
strongly  mark  the  temptations  of  this  crafty  ad- 
versary. One  is  the  untiring  patience  by  which 
he  would  persuade  men  to  hearken  to  his  sug- 
gestions ;  the  indomitab-le  perseverance  by 
which  he  employs  himself  with  their  thoughts 
by  day  and  by  night,  pursuing  and  worrying, 
hunting  and  dogging  his  victims  year  after  year, 
14* 


322  THE  MERCY   SEAT, 


until  he  has  planted  his  barbed  arrow  so  deep, 
that  they  despair  of  escaping  his  fury.  The 
other,  inconsistent  as  it  may  be,  is  the  suddenness 
of  Ms  assaults  ;  the  unexpected  fury  of  his  on- 
sets, giving  his  victims  no  time  to  deliberate, 
enterinof  into  no  discussions  with  them,  but 
summoning  all  his  artifice  and  energy  to  carry 
them  by  surprise.  And  the  third  is,  to  keep 
himself  out  of  sight;  to  secrete  himself  from  ob- 
servation, from  suspicion  even,  until  the  "  bird 
is  taken  in  the  suare,  and  knoweth  not  that  it 
is  for  his  life." 

Such  are  some  of  the  more  ordinary  expo 
sures  to  sin  which  this  request  contemplates 
The  world,  the  flesh,  and  the  devil,  these  three 
mighty  kingdoms,  in  all  the  strength  and  sub- 
tlety of  their  unhallowed  alliance,  are,  ever  and 
anon,  directing  their  assaults  against  the  men 
of  prayer,  against  all  men,  and  w^th  an  unwea- 
riedness  and  success  that  are  surpassed  only  by 
him  whose  eyes  never  slumber,  and  who  is 
stronger  than  the  strong  man  in  his  armor. 

Here  then  we  may  discover  what  it  is  a  Chris- 
tian prays  for  when  he  says,  "  Lead  me  not  into 
temptation."  He  vvoukl  be  delivered  from  the 
severity  of  this  conflict;  and  if  he  may  not  be 
free  from  it,  lie  asks  that  he  may  be  supported. 
"For  this  thing  I  besought  the  Lord  thrice," 
says  Paul,  "  that  it  might  depart  from  me  ;  and 


TEMPTATION  DEPLORED.  323 


he  said  unto  me,  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee !'" 
This  petition  more  especially  contemplates  as 
great  an  exemption  from  this  exposure  as  is  con- 
sistent with  the  designs  and  will  of  God.  In  the 
wide  range  between  sinless  perfection  and  ab- 
solute apostasy,  some  degree  of  exposure  is  un- 
avoidable ;  nor  does  he  know  how  much  may 
be  needful  for  the  "  trial  of  his  faith,"  for  the 
proof  of  his  integrity,  for  his  usefulness  in  the 
world,  for  the  conquests  of  divine  grace,  and  for 
ultimately  securing  his  everlasting  crown.  It  is 
well  that  the  history  of  the^  people  of  God  in 
this  particular  is  an  unknown  history,  and  that 
it  never  will  be  fully  known  till  the  day  when 
the  promise  is  made  good,  "  To  him  that  over- 
cometh  will  I  grant  to  sit  with  me  on  my  throne, 
even  as  I  overcame,  and  am  set  down  with  my 
Father  on  his  throne." 

John  in  the  vision  of  the  Apocalypse  heard 
the  voice,  "  What  are  these  which  are  arrayed 
in  white  robes,  and  whence  came  they?"  It 
was  the  inquirer  himself  who  rejoined,  "  These 
are  they  which  came  out  of  great  tribulation, 
and  have  w^ashed  their  robes,  and  made  them 
white  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb."  They  had 
labored  and  suffered  for  the  gospel.  They  had 
stood  firm  and  fast  in  a  persecuting  and  degen- 
erate age.  They  had  not  fallen,  nor  fainted  in 
the  "  hour  of  temptation  that  came  upon  all  the 


324,  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


earth,"  but  sealed  their  testimony  with  their 
blood.  God  has  thus  tempted  thousands  of  his 
people,  to  whom  he  has  given  grace  to  be 
"  faithful  unto  death,"  and  to  whom  he  has 
awarded  "  a  crown  of  life."  He  tempted  Abra- 
ham by  a  command  filled  with  all  the  emphasis 
of  terror;  he  tempted  Job  and  he  tempted  Paul. 
"  Beloved,"  says  the  Apostle  Peter  to  the  dis- 
persed people  of  God,  "  think  it  not  strange  con- 
cerning the  fiery  trial  which  is  to  try  you,  as 
though  some  strange  thing  had  happened  unto 
you."  It  is  no  #new  thing  that  temptations 
should  beset  them;  nor  is  it  any  phenomenon 
in  the  divine  government,  that  they  should  be 
turned  to  good  account.  "  There  hath  no  temp- 
tation overtaken  you,"  says  Paul  to  the  Corin- 
thians, "  but  such  as  is  common  to  man ;  but 
God  is  faithful  who  will  not  suffer  you  to  be 
tempted  above  that  ye  are  able  ;  but  will  with 
the  temptation  also  make  a  way  to  escape,  that 
ye  may  be  able  to  bear  it."  I  have  known 
those  who,  from  a  sinful  confidence  in  their 
own  powers  of  endurance,  and  from  a  self-right- 
eous desire  to  express  their  own  meekness 
and  submission  under  trials,  actually  desired  this 
conflict  with  themselves  and  the  powers  of  dark- 
ness. And  I  have  seen  them  most  bitterly  be- 
wail their  presumption.  Though  good  men  may 
come  unscathed  from  temptations,  they  are  not 


TEMPTATION   DEPLORED.  325 


to  be  sought.  It  is  time  enough  to  "  glory  in 
tribulation,"  when  it  comes.  If  God  bring  it, 
he  will  deliver.  It  is  not  in  piety  then  to  be  a 
rebel;  she  may  not  then  resist  and  oppose  the 
will  of  God,  but  "  rather  count  it  all  joij  when 
she  falls  into  divers  temptations,  knowing  this, 
that  the  trial  of  her  faith  worketh  patience," 
and  that  it  is  no  loss  when  "  patience  has  her 
perfect  work,  entire,  wanting  nothing."  Nor  is 
it  any  strange  thing  that  piety,  when  thus  un- 
avoidably exposed,  should  be  the  gainer  by 
every  seduction  successfully  resisted,  every  trial 
patiently  endured.  There  is  honey  even  in  the 
carcass  of  the  lion  ;  "  out  of  the  eater  comes  forth 
meat,  and  out  of  the  strong  comes  forth  sweet- 
ness." Thus  tempted,  the  child  of  God  has 
many  a  promise  to  sustain  and  comfort  him. 
He  who  came  from  the  bosom  of  the  Father  to 
"  destroy  the  works  of  the  devil,"  was  himself 
exposed  to  the  impudent  assaults  of  this  Spirit 
of  all  evil.  If  he  did  not  escape  the  assault, 
much  less  may  voe  escape.  Like  a  brave  prince, 
he  not  only  commands  his  followers,  but  places 
himself  at  the  head  of  his  embattled  hosts,  and 
himself  breasts  the  first  onset  of  the  enemy.  It 
is  not  unfrequently  with  them,  after  sore  temp- 
tations, as  it  was  with  him,  when  behold,  "  the 
devil  leaveth  them,  and  angels  come  and  minis- 
ter unto  them." 


326  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


While  the  petition,  "  lead  us  not  into  tempta- 
tion," therefore,  does  not  contemplate  an  entire 
exemption  from  temptation,  it  contemplates  as 
great  an  exemption  as  is  consistent  with  the  will 
of  our  Father  who  is  in  heaven.  In  such  a 
world  as  this,  and  with  such  a  heart  as  dwells  in 
man,  who  feels  not  the  strong  propriety,  the  ur- 
gent need  of  such  a  request  ?  Nothing  is  more 
helpless  than  a  Christian  unprotected  by  the 
providence,  unsupported  by  the  grace  of  his 
heavenly  Father.  He  is  as  a  sickly  plant,  under 
the  withering  tempest.  He  is  like  the  lost 
sheep,  bleating  in  the  lone  and  dense  forest,  or 
trembling  on  the  cragged  rock,  pursued  by  sav- 
age beasts  and  savage  men,  and  never  secure, 
save  when  He  who  "  gathers  the  lambs  with  his 
arm,  and  carries  them  in  his  bosom,"  maketh 
him  to  "  lie  down  in  green  pastures,  and  leadeth 
him  beside  the  still  waters."  It  is  not  so  much 
in  resisting  temptation,  as  in  not  being  led  into 
it,  that  his  safety  lies. 

Be  this,  then,  the  reader's  prayer,  "  lead  me 
not  into  temptation."  Tread  not  too  closely  on 
the  borders  of  evil,  when  there  is  a  "  highway 
of  holiness."  Make  no  treaty  with  the  foe. 
Beware  of  scenes  and  objects,  of  places,  employ- 
ments, and  men,  of  feelings  and  fancies,  which 
ensnare. 


TEMPTATION   DEPLORED,  327 


"  My  soul,  be  on  thy  guard, 
Tea  thousand  foes  arise  ; 
And  hosts  of  sin  are  pressing  hard 
To  draw  thee  from  the  skies." 

If  a  man  is  doubtful  of  the  moral  rectitude  of 
any  course  of  conduct,  let  him  bring  it  to  the 
test,  by  asking  the  question,  Is  it  not  ensnar- 
ing ?  Of  this  one  thing  he  may  be  assured,  that 
it  is  more  than  doubtful,  if  he  cannot  enter  upon 
it  with  the  petition  on  his  lips,  "  lead  me  not  into 
temptation."  Listen  to  the  counsels  of  heavenly 
wisdom,  when  they  say,  "  Be  sober,  be  vigilant; 
for  your  adversary  the  devil,  as  a  roaring  lion, 
goeth  about  seeking  whom  he  may  devour." 
Be  vigilant,  because  your  foes  are  subtle,  and 
aim  their  most  envenomed  arrows  in  the  dark. 
Be  sober,  because  levity  and  folly  tempt  the 
tempter.  These  days  of  temptation  will  soon 
be  over ;  therefore  "  be  strong  in  the  Lord,  and 
in  the  power  of  his  might."  It  is  not  against 
flesh  and  blood  alone  that  you  are  wrestling; 
wherefore  "  put  on  the  whole  armor  of  God, 
that  ye  may  be  able  to  withstand  in  the  evil 
day." 

"  Alas  !  what  hourly  dangers  rise  ! 
What  snares  beset  my  way  ! 
To  heaven,  0  let  me  lift  my  eyes, 
And  hourly  watch  and  pray  ! 


fiijiiii 


328  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


■  0  keep  me  in  thy  heavenly  way 
And  bid  the  tempter  flee. 
And  let  me  never,  never  stray 
From  happiness  and  thee  !* 


CHAPTER   XV. 


THE    DREAD    OF    SIN. 


"%u\  Mm  n  hm  €mW' 

Men  may  be  tempted  to  sin,  while  they  may 
foil  the  tempter,  and  not  only  remain  unhurt,  but 
come  forth  from  the  furnace  like  purified  gold. 
The  evil  they  most  fear  is,  yielding  to  the  sug- 
gestions and  incentives  of  the  adversary,  and 
suffering  the  bitter  consequences  of  their  folly 
and  wickedness.  It  is  one  of  the  most  natural 
expressions  of  piety  in  the  world,  therefore,  for 
them  daily  to  present  the  request  at  the  throne 
of  grace,  "  Deliver  us  from  evil." 

It  is  not  necessary  to  occupy  much  time,  in 
unfolding  the  true  meaning  of  this  request.  It 
may  not  be  supposed,  that  in  offering  it,  the 
child  of  God  prays  to  be  delivered  from  all  evil, 
of  every  kind  and  degree.  A  measure  oi  suffer- 
ing is  what  he  expects.  He  never  prays,  nor 
should  he  even  venture  to  desire  to  be  delivered 
from   that  measure   of  it  which  his  Heavenly 


330  THE   MERCY  SEAT. 


Father  sees  best  for  him.  The  prayer  to  be 
wholly  delivered  from  it  were  an  implicit,  if  not 
expressed  and  direct  revolt  against  the  revealed 
purpose  of  God,  as  well  as  against  his  wise  and 
holy  providence,  and  the  discipline  of  that 
covenanted  faithfulness  and  grace,  by  which  he 
is  weaned  from  the  world,  and  fitted  for  his 
heavenly  inheritance. 

The  design  and  scope  of  the  passage  show 
that  the  "  evil"  alluded  to  in  this  request  is  sin. 
"  Lead  us  not  into  temptation,  but  deliver  us 
from  eviir  The  emphasis  of  the  request  lies  in 
the  obvious  antithesis.  Men  are  not  tempted 
to  suffering,  but  to  sin.  The  original  word, 
here  translated  evil,  is  indeed  of  more  compre- 
hensive import,  but  it  is  quite  as  frequently  used 
to  denote  moral  evil,  as  that  which  is  merely 
physical.  The  Saviour,  in  praying  for  his  disci- 
ples, says,  "  I  pray  not  that  thou  wouldest  take 
them  out  of  the  world,  but  that  thou  wouldest 
keep  them  from  the  evil^  He  was  not  unwil- 
ling that  they  should  live,  and  labor,  and  suffer ; 
he  had  forewarned  them  of  this  allotment ;  suf- 
fering was  their  vocation  and  honor ;  tribulation 
was  that  in  which  they  had  been  taught  to 
glory ;  but  he  prayed  most  fervently  that  they 
might  be  kept  from  sin,  and  from  the  power  of 
their  spiritual  enemies. 

So,  when,  in  this  formula  and  compend  of 


THE   DREAD   OF    SIN.  331 


prayer,  he  instructs  them  to  supplicate  their 
Father  who  is  in  heaven,  that  he  would  "  de- 
liver them  from  evil,''  he  means  the  great  evil, 
the  ruthless  enemy,  the  deadly  plague  of  sin. 
This  is  the  evil  to  which  they  are  most  exposed, 
which  they  most  hate,  and  which  they  are  most 
afraid  of  This  is  the  evil  which  most  easily 
besets  them  ;  which  they  find  the  most  difficult 
to  restrain  and  resist ;  and  which  has  the  earli- 
est, the  deepest,  and  the  most  enduring  lodgment 
within  them.  This  is  the  burden  of  w  hich  they 
most  bitterly  complain ;  heavier  than  losses, 
more  distressing  than  sickness,  more  mournful 
than  sorrow,  severer  than  persecution,  more 
withering  than  reproach,  more  galling  than 
chains.  This  is  the  enemy  with  which  they 
are  called  to  maintain  a  sleepless  and  perpetual 
warfare,  because  it  contends  for  the  throne  in 
their  hearts ;  because  if  it  is  let  alone,  it  will 
live  and  reign  in  the  soul  forever;  and  because 
it  never  dies,  save  a  lingering,  painful,  and  ex- 
cruciating death.  This  is  the  sea  of  trouble 
whose  dark  waters  roll  over  them,  and  which, 
though  often  buffeted  and  repelled,  may  return 
from  some  unexpected  source  and  in  some  new 
channel,  and  sink  them  in  the  depths.  They 
can  welcome  anything  rather  than  this.  There 
is  nothing  that  is  the  source  of  so  much  de- 
pression and  discouragement  as  this  great  evlL 


jAt 


332  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


It  costs  them  tears,  and  groans,  and  prayers. 
•'  Mine  iniquities,"  says  the  Psalmist,  "  are  gone 
over  my  head ;  as  an  heavy  burden,  they  are 
too  heavy  for  me.  I  am  troubled,  I  am  bowed 
down  greatly ;  I  go  mourning  all  the  day  long. 
I  am  feeble  and  sore  broken ;  I  have  roared  by 
reason  of  the  disquietude  of  my  heart!"  Many 
a  time  are  .they  constrained  to  exclaim  with 
Paul,  "  O  wretched  man  that  I  am !  who  shall 
deliver  me  from  the  body  of  this  death  ?" 

One  of  the  most  effective  means  of  deliver- 
ance from  this  great  evil,  is  prayer.  There  are, 
it  is  true,  other  means.  Temptation  must  be 
avoided ;  evil  pursuits,  evil  associations,  and  all 
corrupting  influences  must  be  put  far  away. 
We  must  realize  more  deeply  our  obligations  to 
God.  We  must  labor  for  a  deeper  sense  of  the 
vanity  of  this  world,  and  more  abiding  impres- 
sions of  the  world  to  come.  We  must  dwell 
often  and  tenderly  on  the  love  and  sufferings  of 
our  great  atoning  and  interceding  High  Priest. 
We  must  acquaint  ourselves  more -with  God, 
habitually  feel  that  we  are  always  in  his  pres- 
ence, be  cheerfully  employed  in  our  duty,  and 
make  it  our  high  ambition  always  to  do  those 
things  which  are  well  pleasing  in  his  sight  who 
sees  us  everywhere,  and  from  whose  presence 
none  can  flee.  But  the  great  encouragement, 
and   stimulus,  and   relief  in  all  these  efforts  is 


THE   DREAD   OF   SIN.  333 


derived  from  prayer.  Sin  cannot  be  mortified 
without  prayer,  because  it  cannot  be  mortified 
without  a  power  superior  to  our  own — the 
power  of  God's  gracious,  condescending,  and 
omnipotent  Spirit.  "  If  ye,  through  the  Spirit, 
do  mortify  the  deeds  of  the  body,  ye  shall  live." 

No  man  ever  engaged  in  a  successful  conflict 
with  his  corruptions^  without  feeling  his  depend- 
ence on  God,  and  his  need  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  to 
give  him  the  victory,  even  over  any  one  form  of 
sinning.  Without  this,  nothing  is  accomplished ; 
the  besetting  sin  gains  strength;  all  sin  has 
augmented  power;  and  instead  of  being  deliver- 
ed from  evil,  the  mosl  holy  men,  so  far  from 
making  any  advances  in  the  divine  life,  would 
wax  worse  and  worse. 

We  frequently  read  in  the  Scriptures  of  the 
throne  of  grace,  as  the  refuge  of  God's  people  in 
the  time  of  trouble.  And  what  a  refuge  !  when 
from  the  storms  of  earth,  they  hide  themselves 
in  his  pavilion.  Nor  is  it  more  a  refuge  from 
their  sorrows  and  privations,  and  tribulations, 
than  a  refuge  from  their  sins.  If  true  believers 
in  Jesus  had  a  more  intimate  acquaintance  with 
one  another's  experience,  it  would  probably  be 
found,  that  there  is  no  one  blessing  for  which 
they  prize  the  throne  of  grace  more  than  this. 
Multitudes  are  found  among  them  who  can  say, 
"  Sin  had  been  a  pleasure,  and  religion  a  burden, 


334  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


but  for  the  privilege  of  prayer.  I  had  been  among 
the  vilest  of  men,  but  for  a  throne  of  grace. 
Long  ago,  had  I  been  in  hell  with  the  damned, 
but  for  a  throne  of  grace."  It  is  here  that  the 
soul  not  only  finds  pardon  for  the  past,  but 
strength  for  the  present,  bright  kindlings  of  hope 
for  the  future.  It  is  here  that  she  is  brought  into 
contact,  not  with  things  that  are  evil,  but  things 
that  are  good.  It  is  here  that  she  perceives  the 
beauties  of  holiness,  takes  hold  of  the  divine 
strength  and  the  divine  promises,  feels  that  lier 
life  is  hid  with  Christ  in  God,  and  while  she 
goes  on  her  way,  rejoices  as  she  goes. 

There  are  important  reasons  for  this  special 
request,  "  deliver  us  from  evil."  True  religion 
is  as  reasonable  as  it  is  lovely.  Though  with 
every  child  of  God,  such  a  request  is  in  no  small 
degree  a  matter  o^  feeli7ig,  yet  are  its  weight 
and  importance  enforced  by  every  dictate  of 
reason  and  conscience,  as  well  as  every  emotion 
of  piety.  Let  us  direct  our  thoughts,  in  the  sub- 
sequent part  of  this  chapter,  to  a  consideration 
of  the  question.  Why  do  the  children  of  God  thus 
fervently  pray  to  be  delivered  from  sin  ? 

Sin  is  itself  "  exceedingly  sinful."  It  is  "  an 
evil  thing  and  bitter."  It  is  the  poisoned 
arrow;  the  dart  that  most  bitterly  wounds  the 
soul.  One  of  tlie  points  of  difference  between 
those  who  are  Christians,  and  those  who  are  not 


THE   DREAD  OF   SIN.  335 


Christians,  will  be  found  to  consist  in  their 
different  views  of  sin.  Good  men  view  it  in 
some  measure  as  God  himself  views  it.  The 
reason  why  God  hates  and  forbids  it,  is  that  it  is 
wrong.  It  is  opposed  to  his  nature,  and  a  viola- 
tion of  his  law.  It  is  eminently  the  "  accursed 
thing,"  and  that  which  "  his  soul  hateth."  He 
is  of  "purer  eyes  than  to  behold  evil,  and  cannot 
look  on  iniquity."  He  is  not  opposed  to  it  be- 
cause he  is  afraid  it  will  injure  himself,  though 
it  is  enmity  against  him,  and  all  its  tendencies 
are  to  frustrate  his  designs,  and  subvert  his 
throne.  "If  thou  sinnest,  what  doest  thou 
against  Him?  or  if  thy  transgressions  be  mul- 
tiplied, what  doest  thou  unto  Him?"  His  nature 
remains  spotless,  and  his  blessedness  undisturb- 
ed; his  counsel  shall  stand,  his  throne  endure 
forever,  and  he  will  even  "  make  the  wrath  of 
man  praise  him."  Yet  is  there  nothing  more  re- 
pugnant to  him,  as  a  being  of  perfect  rectitude, 
than  this  abominable,  odious  thing.  He  has  a 
quick,  instinctive,  and  unchanging  sense  of  what 
is  right.  It  is  a  matter  of  principle  with  him, 
nor  can  it  be  otherwise  than  that  he  should  be 
the  everlasting  enemy  of  sin. 

When  men  are  born  of  God,  and  become  his 
children,  they  imbibe  a  portion  of  his  nature  and 
spirit.  Because  sin  is  odious  in  itself,  and  hate- 
ful to  him,  it  is  hateful  to  them.     The  time  was 


336  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


when  they  regarded  it  otherwise ;  but  that  time 
is  gone  by.  All  the  sensibilities  of  their  renew- 
ed nature  are  now  wounded  by  it,  and  it  is  their 
earnest  prayer  that  they  may  be  delivered  from 
its  power.  It  is  all  evil ;  they  see  no  good  in  it. 
It  is  the  fountain  of  corruption.  It  makes  the 
devil  evil ;  it  makes  the  human  heart  evil ;  it 
makes  the  world  evil.  They  themselves  know 
the  pain,  the  grief,  of  being  brought  under  its  do- 
minion ;  they  have  a  painful  sense  of  its  turpi- 
tude. Many  a  time  have  they  been  subdued  to 
tenderness  and  tears,  have  wept  and  bled,  on 
account  of  it. 

It  is  not  like  other  evils  which  come  upon 
them,  and  which  they  mourn  over,  but  which 
have  no  moral  turpitude.  Sickness  and  poverty, 
pain  and  death,  are  evils,  but  they  are  not  sins. 
The  consuming  flame,  the  desolating  flood,  grim 
famine,  the  withering  thunderbolt,  are  evils;  but 
they  are  not  sins.  They  never  sting  the  con- 
science. There  is  some  relief  in  contemplating 
these ;  but,  save  in  the  blood  of  Christ,  there  is 
none  in  contemplating  sin.  It  has  no  excuse,  no 
palliation.  Whatever  it  touches,  it  corrupts  and 
makes  it  evil.  It  has  no  resemblance  to  what  is 
right;  no  one  element  of  purity  and  loveliness. 
In  its  best  forms,  and  least  enormity,  it  is  crime, 
dire  and  direful  crime.  With  all  its  meretri- 
cious adornment,  it  is  an  evil  which  conscience 


THE    DREAD   OF    SIN.  337 


revolts  at,  from  which  every  virtuous  mind 
shrinks,  and  from  which  He  who  once  bore  its 
mighty  burden  and  shame  has  well  taught  his 
disciples  to  implore  deliverance. 

There  is  also  debasement  and  shame  in  siirt, 
as  well  as  moral  turpitude.  The  soul  of  man 
was  originally  pure  and  holy;  it  was  the  most 
amiable  and  beautiful  object  in  this  lower 
world  ;  but  little  lower  than  the  angels,  formed 
in  the  image  of  its  Maker,  lofty,  lovely,  and 
justly  beloved.  It  was  endowed  with  high  in- 
tellectual faculties,  with  a  sound  and  healthy 
conscience,  with  affections  pure  as  the  crystal 
stream.  All  its  parts  were  fitly  joined  together, 
and  all  its  separate  functions  maintained  that 
due  subserviency  and  .subordination  which  con- 
stituted it  an  harmonious  spiritual  existence. 
If  the  love  of  the  beautiful,  the  admiration  for 
the  sublime,  could  be  gratified  with  perceptions 
of  what  was  pleasing  and  grand  in  the  newly 
completed  material  creation,  much  more  were 
they  gratified  with  this  highest,  noblest,  and 
honored  work  of  God. 

It  is  among  the  basest  and  worst  features  of 
sin  that  it  defiles  and  pollutes  the  soul,  once  so 
pure  and  honored.  When  man  fell,  this  pure 
and  lofty  existence  became  deteriorated  and 
depraved ;  its  faculties  were  deranged,  its  har- 
mony  disturbed,   and   its   beauty    defaced,  its 

15 


338  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


glory  turned  into  shame.  It  became  diseased 
and  defiled;  a  pale,  sickly,  debased  existence. 
When  through  matchless  grace,  it  is  born  of 
God,  and  created  anew  in  Christ  Jesus,  it  be- 
gins to  assume  its  primeval  beauty,  to  put  on  its 
vestal  robes,  and  to  shine  forth  in  its  original 
loveliness.  Its  symmetry  is  restored,  and  its 
disjointed  and  jarring  faculties  once  more  act 
in  harmony.  It  makes  progressive  advances  in 
holiness;  habitually,  though  inconstantly,  it  is 
tending  upward,  till  ultimately  it  attains  to  that 
unblotted  excellence  which  was  once  its  high- 
est glory. 

To  this  upward  progress  sin  opposes  the  most 
humiliating  obstacles ;  it  acts  upon  the  mind 
just  as  a  stupefying,  or  inflammatory  disease 
acts  upon  the  body.  To  a  greater  or  less  ex- 
tent, every  sin  does  this;  while  habitual  and 
aggravated  sin  does  it  to  an  alarming  degree. 
The  heart,  the  great  moral  principle,  the  master 
impulse  of  the  wondrous  machinery,  itself  dis- 
ordered, throws  into  disorder  all  the  natural 
faculties.  The  understanding  becomes  dark- 
ened, the  judgment  confounded,  and  reason 
itself  no  longer  compares,  compounds,  and  ar- 
ranges as  a  well-balanced  mind  is  wont  to  do, 
but  plunges  into  the  deepest  and  most  foolish 
absurdities.  The  beauty,  excellence,  and  glory 
of  God  and  divine  thmgs,  fade  from  the  mind,  or 


THE   DREAD   OF   SIN.  339 


are  seen  through  a  false  medium.  Spiritual 
things  are  no  longer  compared  with  spiritual; 
natural  things  are  no  longer  seen  in  their  moral 
relations;  the  views  of  the  mind  are  blind  and 
partial,  and  it  is  warped  to  conclusions  that  are 
false  and  unrighteous.  Memory  too  becomes 
most  treacherous  where  it  ought  to  be  most 
faithful ;  and  instead  of  being  the  repository  of 
thoughts  that  are  true  and  heavenly,  becomes 
the  store-house  of  all  that  is  earthly,  and  not  a 
little  that  is  sensual  and  devilish.  And  con- 
science becomes  misinformed,  misled,  bribed, 
and  stifled;  or  where  it  rises  above  these  er- 
rors, brings  the  soul  into  terror  and  bondage. 

This  view  of  the  evil  of  sin  may  not  impress 
the  minds  of  all  good  men  alike ;  but  there  are 
those  to  whom  it  is  a  most  humiliating  view. 
They  are  conscious  of  the  defilement  of  sin  ;  it  is 
a  melancholy,  debasing  consciousness.  It  de- 
spoils them  of  their  glory,  and  leaves  them  in 
their  nakedness  and  shame.  It  is  like  the 
plague  of  leprosy ;  it  covers  the  soul ;  it  is  too 
polluting  and  contagious  to  go  abroad  without 
some  badge  of  its  unclean ness.  There  is  noth- 
ing in  it  that  is  pure  and  honorable.  It  is  a 
loathsome,  filthy  disease  ;  and  the  man  w  ho  is 
polluted  by  it,  does  well  w  hen  he  covers  his 
face  and  clothes  himself  with  sackcloth. 

When  the  children  of  God  are  conscious  of 


340  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


having  fallen  into  sin,  even  after  their  gracious 
healing,  they  feel  oppressed  with  that  humilia- 
ting sense  of  their  vileness  which  extorts  from 
their  bosoms  the  confession,  "  unclean !  un- 
clean !"  The  prophet's  acknowledgment  was, 
"  O  my  God,  I  am  ashamed  and  blush  to  lift  up 
my  face  to  thee,  my  God  !"  "  O  Lord,  righteous- 
ness belongeth  unto  thee  ;  but  unto  us  confusion 
of  face  r'  It  is  no  marvel  that  the  daily  prayer 
should  go  up  to  the  throne,  "  wash  me  thorough- 
ly from  mine  iniquity,  and  cleanse  me  from  my 
sin  !"  The  pollution  of  sin  is  often  felt  to  be 
deeply  odious  and  degrading ;  in  no  words  is 
the  humbling  sense  of  it  more  fully  expressed 
than  in  the  short  sentence,  "  Behold  I  am  vile  /" 
However  prosperous  their  outward  condition, 
and  however  many  and  expressive  the  tokens  of 
confidence  they  receive  from  their  fellow-men, 
nothing  satisfies  the  people  of  God,  but  to  be 
"delivered  from  the  evil."  They  have  no 
stronger  desire,  no  prayer  more  importunate 
than  that  "  the  body  of  sin  might  be  destroyed, 
that  henceforth  they  should  not  serve  sin." 
Their  daily  application  is  to  the  blood  that 
cleanseth,  and  their  daily  request  that  God 
w^ould  "  heal  their  backslidings." 

It  is  worthy  of  remark,  that  amid  all  the  phi- 
losophical theories  in  regard  to  the  ultimate 
good  which  sin  is  made  to  subserve,  men  of 


THE   DREAD   OF   SIN.  341 


prayer  are  not  embarrassed  with  theories  on  so 
plain  a  subject.  They  do  not  stop  to  ask,  if  God 
may  not  glorify  himself  by  their  wickedness  ;  sin 
is  too  odious  to  allow  of  any  such  palliations. 
In  defiance  of  all  theory,  the  Spirit  of  God  has 
taught  them  its  exceeding  defilement,  and  they 
cannot  help  praying  to  be  delivered  from  its 
pollutions.  Every  emotion  of  piety  prompts 
them  thus  to  pray  ;  the  mere  impulse  of  right 
affection  overpowers  all  their  nice  metaphysical 
distinctions  and  subtleties,  and  constrains  them 
to  implore,  "  Lead  us  not  into  temptation,  but 
deliver  us  from  evil." 

There  is  also  suffering  in  sin,  as  well  as  evil 
and  shame.  In  piety  there  are  joys.  Angels 
find  them  in  the  pure  and  devout  affections 
of  their  own  minds ;  in  their  delighted  con- 
templations of  their  adored  Author  and  Sov- 
ereign ;  in  their  admiring  views  of  his  works 
and  providence  ;  in  their  growing  conceptions 
of  his  great  work  of  redeeming  mercy;  in  their 
fellowship  with  God,  and  in  his  favor  and  love. 
The  lowest  and  meanest  seraph  is  indeed  hap- 
pier in  these  sources  of  joy  than  the  highest 
and  most  exalted  child  of  God  on  earth  ;  yet 
has  the  lowest  and  meanest  child  of  God  on 
earth  spiritual  enjoyments  such  as  "  no  man 
taketh  from  him." 

True   religion,  wherever  it  is  felt  in   purity 


342  THE   MERCY  SEAT. 

*  ■ 

and  power,  always  produces  the  most  happy 
effect  upon  the  mind  that  embraces  it.  It  is 
the  Sun  of  righteousness  arising  upon  the  soul 
after  the  darkness  of  a  long  and  gloomy  night. 
It  is  like  the  returning  spring,  melting  the  ice 
and  dispelling  the  chill  frosts  of  winter,  giving 
life  to  the  buried  seed,  clothing  it  with  verdure, 
and  spangling  it  with  flowers.  It  spreads  seren- 
ity and  joy  over  the  very  countenance,  lights 
up  the  languid  eye,  and  fills  the  lips  wnth  praise. 
Not  more  certainly  is  it  the  life  of  God  in  the 
soul  of  man,  than  it  imparts  a  portion  of  the  very 
blessedness  of  God  to  the  soul  itself.  "  To  be 
carnally  minded  is  death,  but  to  be  spiritually 
mindedis  life  and  peace."  There  is  a  love  of  God, 
a  confidence  and  hope  in  God,  a  communion  and 
fellowship  with  God,  which  not  only  lead  the 
soul  to  stay  itself  upon  him,  and  feel  safe  and 
tranquil,  but  which  fill  it  with  triumph.  "  Thou 
hast  turned  from  me  my  mourning  into  danc- 
ing," saith  the  Psalmist ;  "  thou  hast  put  off  my 
sackcloth  and  girded  me  with  gladness,  to  the 
end  that  my  glory  may  sing  praise  unto  thee, 
and  not  be  silent." 

Nor  is  there  anything  that  preventeth  these 
joys  from  being  constant,  unless  it  be  the  chil- 
ling, w^ithering  influence  of  sin.  Sin  is  the  at- 
mosphere of  death.  It  is  like  returning  winter 
to  the  soul  when  sinful  thoughts,  sinful  passions, 


THE   DREAD   OF   SIN.  343 


and  sinful  pursuits  agitate  it.  They  sweep  over 
its  calm  surface,  and  upturn  the  deep  founda- 
tions of  its  joy.  They  make  it  restless  and  un- 
happy ;  and  if  their  influence  is  permanent,  ren- 
der it  like  a  frozen  ocean,  where  the  ice  of  cen- 
turies has  been  accumulating,  and  every  current 
of  air  that  comes  from  it  chills  and  freezes. 
The  light  of  the  divine  countenance  is  with- 
drawn from  it  by  day,  and  God  its  Maker  no 
longer  gives  it  songs  in  the  night.  Gloom  and 
darkness  hang  over  it.  Its  garments  of  glad- 
ness are  laid  aside,  and  it  puts  on  its  weeds.  It 
has  no  longer  that  comfortable  evidence  of  its 
interest  in  the  divine  favor  which  made  it  joy- 
ful in  the  house  of  prayer.  Deserted  of  all  but 
unbelieving  doubts,  cruel  fears,  a  guilty  con- 
science, and  bitter  lamentations,  it  is  well  nigh 
abandoned  to  its  invisible  enemies,  and  sinks 
into  morbid  dejection  and  melancholy. 

The  Christian  who  is  even  surprised  into  sin, 
finds  it  difficult  to  return  to  his  wonted  enjoy- 
ment of  God.  They  are  suppressed  aspirations 
of  heart  toward  him  which  he  feels  rising  in 
his  bosom;  he  is  embarrassed  in  his  fellowship ; 
his  access  in  the  new  and  living  way  is  ob- 
structed ;  he  feels  for  a  time  like  a  stranger  and 
foreigner,  an  outcast,  rather  than  like  the  hap- 
py child  of  God.  He  has  no  comfort  in  prayer; 
no  light  shines  upon  the  sacred  pages  of  God's 


344  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


word  when  he  opens  that  sacred  volume  ;  no 
promise  meets  his  uncomforted  heart ;  ordinan- 
ces are  barren ;  and  in  the  bitterness  of  his 
soul,  he  is  ready  to  exclaim,  "  God  has  forgotten 
to  be  gracious ;  he  hath  in  anger  shut  up  his 
tender  mercies !" 

A  wicked  man,  a  self-deceived  man,  a  vile 
hypocrite,  can  live  in  such  a  state  of  mind  as 
this,  so  far  as  he  knows  what  such  a  state  of 
mind  is;  but  it  is  a  state  of  mind  which  no 
Christian  can  long  endure.  Things  seen  and 
temporal  cannot  make  him  happy  while  thus 
shut  out  from  things  unseen  and  eternal.  He 
cannot  live  thus  abandoned  of  God  ;  he  would 
welcome  death  in  the  assured  peace  with  his 
heavenly  Father,  rather  than  life  under  the  sor- 
rows of  this  spiritual  desertion. 

It  is  not  without  reason,  therefore,  that  he 
prays  against  the  invasions  of  sin  from  without, 
and  the  indulgence  of  sin  within,  "  Cast  me  not 
away  from  thy  presence;  take  not  thy  Holy 
Spirit  from  me."  His  very  sorrows  and  griefs 
find  their  consolation  in  the  prayer  to  be  deliver- 
ed from  evil. 

Sin  also  diminishes,  if  it  does  not  destroy  the 
Christian's  usefulness.  True  piety  is  efficient 
and  operative.  The  great  object  of  every  Chris- 
tian is  to  "  live  not  to  himself,  but  to  Him  wdio 
died  for  him,  and  rose  again."     But  it  should 


THE   DREAD   OF   SIN.  345 


never  be  forgotten,  that  the  value  of  his  re- 
ligious character  is  derived  from  its  moral  influ- 
ence. Nowhere  is  this  unquestioned  influence 
more  exerted  than  in  those  humble  efforts,  those 
cheerful  acts  of  self-denial,  those  unreluctant 
sacrifices,  and  that  unnoticed  toil  and  patient 
perseverance  in  well-doing,  which  have  the 
promise  of  reaping  in  due  season. 

Sin,  more  especially  indulged  sin,  is  ruinous 
to  his  influence  and  usefulness.  If  even  the 
heaven-born  Paul  complained  that  his  sins  inter- 
rupted him  in  the  performance  of  his  duty,  wdio 
and  wdiere  is  the  saint  that  discovers  not  reasons 
for  the  prayer,  "  Deliver  me  from  evil  ?"  "  I  a»m 
carnal,"  says  this  peerless  Apostle,  "  sold  under 
sin.  For  that  which  I  do,  I  allow  not;  for  wiiat 
I  would,  that  do  I  not ;  but  what  I  hate,  that  do 
I.  I  find,  then,  a  law  that  when  I  w^ould  do 
good,  evil  is  present  with  me."  He  was  con- 
scious of  a  conflict,  the  severity  of  w  hich  some- 
times unfitted  him  for  those  arduous  and  self-de- 
nying duties,  and  those  wondrous  enterprises  of 
Christian  heroism  w^hich  were  the  objects  of  his 
high-wrought  and  holy  zeal.  He  was  afraid  of 
sin,  because  he  well  knew  its  tendency  to  para- 
lyze his  usefulness.  Those  who  possess  most  of 
the  spirit  of  Paul,  for  the  same  reason,  "groan, 
being  burdened."  It  is  an  afflictive  thought  to 
them,  ever  to  be  in  a  state  of  mind  in  which 
15* 


3464|k  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 

their  duty  is  irksome,  or  their  courage  prostrated 
by  self-reproach,  or  the  reproach  of  their  fellow- 
men.  "  Then  shall  I  not  be  ashamed,"  says  the 
Psalmist,  "  when  I  have  respect  to  all  thy  com- 
mandments." When  good  men,  by  their  own 
folly  and  backsliding,  have  brought  opprobrium 
upon  the  sacred  name  by  which  they  are  called, 
when  they  have  thrown  stumbling-blocks  in  the 
way  of  those  that  are  without,. and  not  only 
given  occasion  to  infidels  and  scoffers  to  triumph 
over  their  fall,  and  to  speak  even  more  lightly 
than  they  are  wont  to  do  of  the  religion  of  the 
Bible,  but  have  also  furnished  reason  for  the 
friends  of  God  to  suspect  their  sincerity  ;  they 
know"  not  how  to  lift  up  their  faces,  they  are 
humbled  and  distressed,  and  not  unfrequently 
court  retirement  and  solitude,  rather  than 
spheres  of  activ^e  usefulness.  Even  if  their  sins 
are  secret,  they  feel  a  shrinking  reluctance  at 
occupying  places  of  consideration  and  influence. 
Christian  usefulness  is  a  plant  of  slow  growth  ;  it 
spreads  itself  gradually  ;  yet  if  there  creep  in  a 
w^orm  at  the  root,  it  w  ithers  more  rapidly  than  it 
grew.  The  usefulness  of  a  good  man  is  insepar- 
ably connected  with  the  views  wiiich  men  have 
of  his  religious  character.  Their  respect  for  him 
gives  energy  to  his  efforts.  Men  of  no  great 
strength  of  purpose,  or  vigor  of  effort,  are 
not  unfrequently  in  no  common  degree  useful ; 


THE   DREAD   OF   SIN.  347 


because  they  are,  confessedly,  very  good  men. 
Where  a  good  man  has  palpable  and  glaring 
sins ;  where  his  character  is  such  that,  though 
his  fellovv-men  do  not  deny  him  the  credit  of 
being  a  Christian,  those  who  know  him  best  re- 
spect and  love  him  least ;  he  may  not  hope  to 
be  eminently  useful. 

Though  every  true  Christian  desires  more  to 
he  a  child  of  God,  than  to  seein  to  be  such,  it  is  not 
unbefitting  the  truest  sincerity  and  the  truest 
humility,  that  he  should  desire  so  to  conduct 
himself,  that  his  ffeUow-men  may  have  confidence 
in  his  piety.  Nothing  less  than  this  is  required 
of  him  by  the  Saviour,  when  he  utters  the 
injunction,  "  Let  your  light  so  shine  before  men, 
that  they,  seeing  your  good  works,  may  glorify 
your  father  who  is  in  heaven."  He  should 
be  watchful  that  nothing  he  says  or  does,  and 
nothing  he  leaves  undone  or  unsaid,  shall 
destroy,  or  even  diminish,  the  good  influence  he 
might  otherwise  exert. 

And  is  it  any  marvel  that  such  a  man  should 
sometimes  fear  and  tremble  ?  Is  it  wonderful 
that  he  should  often  employ  his  thoughts  in 
faithful  self-inspection ;  that  he  should  sit  in 
severe  judgment  upon  his  ow^n  heart  and  char- 
acter ;  that  his  daily  prayer  should  be,  "  Hold 
thou  me  up,  and  I  shall  be  safe  !"  "  Deliver 
me  from  evil !" 


348  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


Another  reason  for  this  request  is  found  in  the 
fact,  that  sin  is  so  universally  destructive  in  its 
tendencies  upon  the  happiness  and  best  interests 
of  the  world  in  which  we  dwell.  We  may  only 
glance  at  this  prolific  and  mournful  thought. 
The  ravages  of  sin  may  be  traced  in  all  the 
course  it  has  trodden  from  the  fall  of  angels  to 
the  present  hour.  There  is  no  form  of  happi- 
ness that  has  not  withered  at  its  approach ; 
none  of  misery  and  wo,  be  they  eve»r  so  varied 
and  hideous,  that  have  not  followed  in  its  train. 
It  has  made  the  human  bosom,  otherwise  tran- 
quil and  unruffled,  the  seat  of  conflict,  and  agi- 
tated it  by  storms.  It  has  drowned  the  hopes 
of  men  in  an  ocean  of  fears.  Throuo-hout  the 
length  and  breadth  of  this  wide  world  it  has 
dug  its  valley  of  tears,  and  overhung  it  by 
the  shadows  of  death.  Its  emblems  are  huns: 
round  the  dungeon  and  the  stake,  the  prison 
and  the  gallov^^s ;  they  are  suspended  over 
every  battle-field,  and  immingled  with  every 
convulsion  that  has  passed  with  confused  noise 
over  the  earth. 

Go  to  the  bowels  of  the  earth  and  the  chan- 
nels of  the  sea,  and  there  are  its  triumphs ;  it 
has  made  sea  and  land  a  world  of  graves.  It 
kills  the  body  and  damns  the  soul.  It  created 
the  walls  of  that  gloomy  prison,  whose  broad 
gateway    bears    the    inscription,   "  Where    the 


THE   DREAD   OF   SIN.  349 


worm  dieth  not  and  the  fire  is  not  quenched." 
There  it  confines  the  rebel  angels;  there  it  con- 
ducted Sodom  and  Gomorrah ;  there  it  hurled 
Pharaoh  and  Babylon  ;  and  there  its  burning, 
malignant  fury  remains  unquenched.  Ruined 
legions  emit  thence  the  memorable  warning, 
"Beware  of  sin!"  and  were  they  still  prisoners 
of  hope,  would  say,  "  Deliver  us  from  evil  !" 

There  is  still  another  reason  for  this  request ; 
it  is  found  in  the  claims  of  redeeming  love. 
The  suppliant  is  one  who  addresses  the  God  of 
pardon.  He  has  become  reconciled  to  him 
through  that  mighty  Sufferer  who  hung  upon 
the  cross.  God  is  his  Father  now;  he  would 
not  wound  that  heart  of  paternal  love.  More 
powerful  than  the  obligations  of  the  lav^',  the  love 
of  God,  the  love  of  the  cross  attracts  him.  It  is 
not  fear  that  moves  him  so  much  as  love. 
"  Perfect  love  casteth  out  fear ;"  and  though  his 
love  is  far  from  perfect,  yet  is  it  stronger  than 
those  chains  of  darkness  at  which  he  once  trem- 
bled ;  more  potent  than  the  fiery  walls  of  that 
eternal  prison  which  once  filled  him  with  terror: 
and  by  its  resistless  bands,  draws  him  every  day 
to  his  Father's  mercy  seat,  to  supplicate,  "  De- 
liver me  from  evil."  His  heart  is  burdened 
with  the  desire  that  he  may  have  no  fellowship 
with  the  cruel,  accursed  thing  that  tore  the 
much-loved  One  from   the   tranquil   bosom  of 


350  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


heaven,  dragged  him  down  to  the  degradation 
of  a  creature,  the  servitude  of  a  slave,  and 
shamelessly  nailed  him  to  the  cross.  Sin  was 
the  crime  perpetrated  in  the  holy  empire  of  the 
Most  High,  that  could  not  be  atoned  for,  save 
by  the  eternal  agonies  of  the  perpetrator,  or  the 
cruciiixion  of  the  eternal  Son  of  God  ;  and  shall 
he  not  hate  it  ?  shall  he  not  pray  to  be  delivered 
from  its  power  ?  Thousands  of  rams,  and  ten 
thousand  rivers  of  oil  could  not  make  amends 
for  it;  and  shall  he  not  bewail  its  malignity? 
Go  forth,  O  my  soul,  and  see  what  sin  has  done  ! 
Look  away  to  Calvary,  and  there  read  and  learn 
the  never-to-be-forgotten  lesson.  Go  on  those 
bended  knees  before  the  throne  of  mercy,  and 
when,  in  the  peaceful  and  heaven-imparted 
spirit  of  adoption,  thou  canst  say,  "  My  Father 
who  art  in  heaven  ;"  say  also,  "  Deliver  me  from 
evil-!" 

Something  like  the  preceding  views  are  those 
of  every  true  believer,  in  giving  utterance  to 
this  emphatic  request.  The  conflict  of  such 
a  man  with  sin  is  very  different  from  the  mere 
struggles  of  natural  conscience.  Wicked  men 
are  not  strangers  to  this  conflict,  in  some  sort ; 
but  while  their  conscience  struggles  against 
it,  they  do  not  feel  it  to  be  their  burden,  but  are 
still  controled  by  the  love  of  sinning.  The 
struggles  of  natural  conscience  are  occasional 


THE   DREAD   OF   SIN.  351 


and  partial ;  while  the  Christian's  conflict  with 
sin  is  habitual.  His  warfare  is  with  the  whole 
body  of  sin;  nor  does  he  cease  from  the  conflict, 
until  at  last  he  gains  tiie  victory.  Natural  con- 
science wages  war,  mainly,  with  outward  sins; 
wdiile  true  piety  watches,  with  eagle  eye,  the 
secret  evils  of  the  heart,  and  contends  with  sins 
known  only  to  the  all-seeing  Witness  and  Judge. 
The  believer  hates  sin;  the  unbeliever  fears  it, 
and  only  with  the  servile  fear  of  punishment. 
The  believer  resists  it  from  principles  unknown 
to  mere  natural  conscience.  He  contends  with 
it  by  faith  and  prayer,  and  in  humble  depend- 
ence on  his  Father  who  is  in  heaven  ;  while 
natural  conscience  leaves  out  of  sight  the  "grace 
to  help."  When  a  good  man  sins,  his  conscience 
ultimately  becomes  more  sensitive  and  faithful; 
he  dreads  the  approaches  to  sin,  as  the  ''■burnt 
child  dreads  the  fire ;''''  while  experience  and  ob- 
servation show,  that  the  more  a  wicked  m.an 
sins,  the  more  does  his  conscience  become  cal- 
lous and  seared.  Judas  felt  the  scorpion  sting 
of  a  wounded  conscience;  Peter,  the  pangs  of  a 
broken  and  contrite  spirit. 

This  petition  in  the  Lord's  Prayer,  therefore, 
furnishes  one  of  the  criteria  by  which  every  man 
may  judge  of  his  spiritual  state.  Could  you 
listen  when  a  thoughtless  sinner  prays,  you 
might  hear  professions  of  thankfulness,  requests 


352  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


for  the  divine  bounty,  deprecations  of  the  coming 
wrath;  but  few,  if  any,  supplications  to  be  de- 
livered from  sin.  Could  your  ear  be  open,  when 
the  child  of  God  enters  into  his  closet,  and  shuts 
the  door,  you  would  hear  what,  in  the  ears  of  the 
men  of  the  world,  might  seem  some  strange 
requests.  You  would,  indeed,  hear  the  song 
of  thanksgiving,  and  the  pleadings  of  a  broken 
heart  for  pardoning  mercy ;  but  you  would  hear 
solicitations  still  more  fervent,  to  be  "  delivered 
from  evil."  Nay,  in  the  seasons  of  his  greatest 
fervor  and  spirituality,  such  a  man  might  rise 
from  his  knees,  without  once  uttering  the  re- 
quest, "  Give  us  this  day  our  daily  bread ;"  while 
he  would  never  forget  to  implore  that  God  would 
keep  him  from  sin,  and  make  him  more  and  more 
conformed  to  the  image  of  his  Son.  Another  day 
will  show  if  the  reader  has  this  spirit,  and  thus 
indicate  whether  he  is  or  is  not  a  child  of  God. 
I  have  said,  that  the  Christian's  struggle  with 
sin  is  no  momentary  conflict.  Nor  is  it  an  unsuc- 
cessful one.  He  may  not  gain  every  battle;  he 
may,  indeed,  sometimes  fall,  and  be  found  bruis- 
ed and  maimed,  and  bleeding,  on  the  field ;  but 
he  shall  at  last  come  off  more  than  conqueror, 
through  Him  that  loved  him.  "  In  the  world  ye 
shall  have  tribulation,  but  be  of  good  cheer,  I 
have  overcome  the  world."  Spiritual  affections 
may  languish  and  decline,  but  they  shall  not  die. 


THE   DREAD  OF   SIN.  353 


It  were  a  dark  sign,  if  the  Christian  were  satis- 
fied with  his  present  attainments.  Let  him  take 
courage  in  the  thought,  that  "  iniquity  shall  not 
be  his  ruin."  He  is  "  not  of  them  that  draw 
back  to  perdition,  but  of  them  that  believ^e 
to  the  saving  of  the  soul."  Let  him  study  to 
prove  himself  a  "  good  soldier  of  Christ."  Let 
him  seek  to  know,  not  how  he  may  cover  his  sin, 
but  how  he  may  detect  it,  and  how  it  may 
be  subdued.  "  He  can  do  all  things,  through 
Christ  strengthening  him." 

There  are  those  who  trifle  with  sin.  They 
trifle  with  it  in  their  thoughts ;  they  speak  light- 
ly of  it ;  they  excuse  and  extenuate  it ;  they 
commit  it  without  remorse ;  and  they  rejoice 
and  triumph,  when  they  discover  it  in  them- 
selves, and  in  their  fellow-men.  Never  was 
there  a  deeper  infatuation  than  this.  "Fools 
make  a  mock  at  sin."  Nothing  remains  for  such 
a  man,  but  "  indignation  and  wrath,  tribulation 
and  anguish."  Sin  is  his  enemy.  It  will  be  a 
miracle  of  mercy,  if  it  do  not  give  malignity  to 
the  undying  worm,  and  ignite  the  fires  that  nev- 
er shall  be  quenched. 

Should  these  pages  fall  into  the  hands  of  any 
one  thus  insensate  and  infatuated,  let  him  stop  in 
his  mad  career,  before  he  makes  the  fearful 
plunge  into  the  world  of  retribution  ;  let  him 
"  look  on  Him  whom  he  has  pierced,  and  mourn." 


354  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


Even  now,  the  throne  of  grace  invites  him  to 
bow  at  its  footstool,  in  self-abasement  and  tears. 
No  prayer  is  more  befitting  such  a  man,  than 
this  last  request,  in  that  form  of  prayer  which 
Christ  taught  his  disciples,  "  Deliver  me  from 
evil."  Let  him  "  break  off  his  iniquity  by  right- 
eousness, and  his  transgressions  by  turning 
to  God."  Let  him  repair  to  the  fountain  open- 
ed for  sin  and  uncleanness,  and  say,  "  Purge  me 
with  hyssop,  and  I  shall  be  clean ;  wash  me,  and 
I  shall  be  whiter  than  snow."  Let  him  go  at 
once;  let  him  fill  his  mouth  with  arguments;  let 
him  urge  his  way  through  obstacle  and  snare ; 
let  him  boldly  and  fearlessly  come  near  the 
throne. — Oh,  what  is  this  I  am  saying  ?  Let 
him  rather,  like  the  Publican,  who,  "  standing 
afar  off,  durst  not  lift  his  eyes  to  heaven," 
smite  upon  his  breast,  and  say,  "  God  be  mer- 
ciful to  me  a  sinner !" 


CHAPTER   XVI. 


THE  ARGUMENT  BY  WHitlH  PRAYER  IS  ENFORCED. 


"/nr  €\}m  is  \^t  lingkni,  ml  tjiB  ^kmtt,  ml  tlj? 

We  feel  no  small  degree  of  reluctance  in  dis- 
missing our  contemplations  upon  this  inimitable 
prayer.  In  bringing  our  meditations  upon  it  to 
a  close,  our  emotions  are  not  unlike  those  the 
Christian  feels  in  the  more  favored  seasons  when 
he  has  "  climbed  the  mount  of  prayer,"  and 
with  lingering  and  tardy  steps  turns  again  to 
mingle  with  the  noisy  and  bustling  world. 
Thought  crowds  upon  thought  in  his  supplica- 
tions ;  emotion  swells  upon  emotion ;  and  his 
suppressed,  yet  reiterated  Amen,  while  it  speaks 
the  satisfaction  of  his  heart  at  the  throne  of 
grace,  also  tells  its  sadness  that  he  must  mingle 
with  other  and  less  hallowed  scenes. 

Our  regret  at  arriving  so  soon  at  the  close  of 
these  meditations,  is,  however,  not  a  little  re- 


356  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


lieved  by  the  richness  and  variety  of  the  topics 
on  which  we  are  allowed  to  dwell  in  these 
closing  thoughts.  When  Christ  undertakes  to 
teach  us,  the  instruction  is  complete.  He  will 
not  have  our  petitions  abrupt  in  their  beginning, 
nor  altogether  unceremonious  in  their  conclu- 
sion. We  should  approach  the  mercy  seat  re- 
cognizing his  kindness,  his  tenderness,  his  great- 
ness ;  and  leave  it  acknowledging  our  depend- 
ence upon  him  for  all  we  desire  and  expect. 
"  For  thine  is  the  kingdom,  the  power,  and  the 
glory,  forever,  Amen." 

In  attempting  to  unfold  and  impress  the  spirit 
of  this  concluding  sentence,  we  may  not  over- 
look the  force  of  the  conjunctive  word, /or,  with 
which  it  begins :  this  is  the  true  key  to  the 
whole  passage.  "For  thine  is  the  kingdom, 
and  the  power,  and  the  glory."  This  is  the 
reason  urged  by  the  suppliants  why  the  request 
so  comprehensively  set  forth,  and  embodying 
objects  of  such  magnitude,  should  be  granted. 
In  offering  them,  they  solicit  no  common  favors  ; 
they  "  open  their  mouth  wide,  that  God  may  fill 
it."  They  ask  for  nothing  less  than  that  the 
name  of  their  Father  who  is  in  heaven  may 
be  hallowed — that  his  kingdom  may  come — that 
his  will  may  be  done  on  earth,  as  it  is  in  heaven 
— that  he  would  furnish  them  with  the  daily 
supply  of  all  their  wants — that  he  would  pardon 


PRAYER  ENFORCED.  357 


all  their  sins — that  he  would  not  lead  'them  into 
temptation — that  he  would  deliver  them  from 
evil.  There  is  great  compass  of  thought  and 
desire  in  such  requests.  What  encouragement, 
what  warrant  even,  have  sinning  men  for  offer- 
ing them  ?  By  what  arguments  can  they  urge 
such  petitions,  and  what  reason  have  they  to 
look  for  favorable  and  gracious  answers  to  the 
voice  of  their  supplication  ? 

They  are  weighty  reasons,  effective  reasons : 
The  kingdom,  and  the  jwiver,  and  the  glory,  be- 
long to  the  great  and  gracious  Being  addressed, 
and  belong  to  him  forever .  They  do  not  pray  to 
the  idols  of  the  heathen,  who  are  the  work  of 
men's  hands  ;  nor  to  men  who  are  as  powerless 
as  themselves  ;  nor  to  saints,  nor  angels,  nor  yet 
the  highly  favored  mother  of  the  incarnate  Jesus, 
who  have  neither  kingdom,  nor  glory,  nor  any 
power  save  such  as  God  is  pleased  to  give  them. 
The  object  of  their  supplications  is  their  Father 
who  is  in  heaven.  It  is  not  merely  to  all  that  is 
affectionate,  and  kind,  and  condescending  in  his 
paternal  character,  that  they  make  their  appeal ; 
but  to  all  that  is  great  and  glorious.  It  is  to  the 
"  King  eternal,  immortal,  and  invisible  ;"  to  the 
"  Lord  God  Almighty ;"  to  the  "  Father  of 
glory,"  as  well  as  the  Father  of  mercies,  and 
"  their  Father  who  is  in  heaven." 

Prayer  is  not  the  unmeaning  utterance  of  the 


358  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


lips,  nor  the  effort  of  an  unthinking  mind. 
There  is  strong  propriety,  there  is  even  irjiportance 
in  urging  our  requests  at  the  throne  of  grace,  by 
reason  arid  argument.  We  are  taught  by  the 
Apostle  James  that  "  the  effectual,  fervent  prayer 
of  a  righteous  man  availeth  much."  With 
xvhom  does  it  avail  ?  Not  with  the  suppliant, 
for  he  is  the  person  who  prays,  and  not  the  per- 
son to  whom  prayer  is  addressed.  It  has  been 
more  generally  believed  that  the  true  and  proper 
design  of  prayer  is  to  produce  an  effect  on  the 
suppliant,  by  bringing  into  exercise  the  graces 
of  his  renewed  nature,  and  securing  such  a  state 
of  mind  as  God  shall  approve,  and  to  which  he 
will  grant  that  expression  of  his  approbation 
implied  in  answers  to  prayer.  No  doubt  that 
this  is  one  of  the  effects  of  prayer;  but  the 
very  idea  of  prayer  carries  with  it  the  idea  that 
its  design  is  to  act  upon  the  Mind  of  the  Being 
to  Avhom  it  is  addressed.  Nor,  so  far  as  I  can 
recall  the  instructions  of  the  Bible,  is  there  a 
single  sentence,  or  suggestion,  that  the  great 
o^'d'C^  of  prayer  is  to  produce  a  fitting  state  of 
mind  in  the  suppliant  to  receive  the  blessing 
he  solicits.  The  Being  prayed  to  is  God  him- 
self; nor  is  the  language  too  strong,  to  sa}'  that 
the  design  of  praying  to  him  is  to  influence  and 
induce  him  to  give  what  we  ask  for.  It  is  not  to 
inform,  or  change  the  Deity;  for  there  is  "no 


PRAYER  ENFORCED.  359 


variableness,  neither  shadow  of  turning"  with 
him ;  he  "  is  of  one  mind,  and  who  can  turn 
him,  and  what  his  soul  desireth  that  he  doeth." 
It  is  not  inconsistent  with  the  doctrine  of  the 
divine  immutability,  that  one  of  the  unchanging 
properties  of  his  nature  is  that  he  is  the  hearer 
of  prayer,  and  that  he  is  not  less  immutably  a 
prayer-hearing  God  than  he  is  a  God  of  recti- 
tude and  truth.  It  is  true  that  his  counsels 
never  change ;  but  it  is  equally  true  that  no 
small  part  of  them  were  formed  in  the  fore- 
knowledge of  all  those  supplications  by  which 
He  had  previously  resolved  to  be  influenced, 
and  which  were  regarded  by  him  as  the  ap- 
pointed means  by  which  his  purposes  are  car- 
ried into  effect,  and  which  as  truly  enter  into, 
and  form  a  part  of  hii^  purposes,  as  the  ends 
themselves  which  his  purposes  secure. 

The  duty  and  the  privilege  of  prayer,  there- 
fore, are  not  embarrassed,  but  sanctioned  and 
encouraged  by  the  immutability  of  the  divine 
purposes.  There  is  no  mysticism  about  this 
plain  subject.  Prayer  itself  is  just  what  it  pur- 
ports to  be  ;  its  object  is  just  what  it  purports 
to  be.  It  is  to  move  the  Deity,  who  from  eter- 
nity determined  to  be  thus  moved,  to  bestow 
what  the  suppliant  solicits.  The  whole  field  of 
reason  and  argument  is  therefore  open  to  the 
mind  of  the  petitioner  when  he  goes   to   the 


360  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


throne  of  grace  ;  it  is  his  privilege,  with  heart- 
felt sincerity,  humility,  and  urgency,  to  suggest 
all  those  considerations  which,  in  the  view  of  a 
devout  mind,  may  operate  as  reasons  for  obtain- 
ing his  request. 

No  reasonable  man  expects  to  receive  a  favor- 
able answer  to  an  unreasonable  request.  We 
ought  not  to  solicit  either  of  God  or  man,  that 
which  is  not  fit  and  proper  to  be  bestowed. 
Such  a  request  were  an  insult  to  him  to  whom 
it  is  presented;  it  were  a  reproach  to  him  who 
offers  it.  When  a  child  requests  a  favor  from  a 
parent,  or  a  subject  makes  a  request  to  his 
prince,  they  are  interested  in  making  their 
cause  good,  and  may  be  expected  to  set  forth 
the  grounds  and  reasons  of  their  petition.  God 
regards  the  supplications  of  men  as  neither  an 
unnatural  nor  arbitrary  means  of  procuring  the 
good  they  crave.  He  never  acts  without  rea- 
son, and  has  good  reasons  for  requiring  them  to 
pray.  He  is  the  most  reasonable  Being  in  the 
universe ;  and  therefore  the  most  easily  and 
certainly  influenced  by  considerations  which 
have  weight  with  a  wise  and  benevolent  mind ; 
so  that  when  requests  are  urged  at  his  throne 
by  befitting  considerations,  they  are  sure  to 
iheet  with  favor  unless  there  are  other  and 
stronger  considerations  known  to  him  why  it 
should  be  denied. 


PRAYER   ENFORCED.  361 


It  is  true  that  men  sometimes  pray  without 
making  use  of  argument  in  prayer;  when  they 
do  so,  it  is  more  generally  to  be  attributed  to 
one  of  two  causes.  Either  they  are  shut  up  and 
have  no  enlargement  of  thought,  and  no  such 
spiritual  perceptions  and  sensibility  as  enable 
them  to  seine  upon  and  amplify  the  grounds  of 
their  requests;  or  they  are  too  full  to  utter 
them,  and  can  only  comprehend  them  in  those 
brief  and  compendious  ejaculations  which  are 
expressive  of  intense  desire,  and  those  pithy 
and  importunate  entreaties  which,  while  they 
forbid  amplification,  are  instead  of  volumes  of 
argument. 

In  almost  every  other  state  of  mind,  they  sug- 
gest the  reasons  why  they  pray,  and  w  hy  God 
should  answer.  Did  they  worship  an  idol  god, 
they  might  rest  satisfied  w^ith  the  unmeaning 
repetition  of  their  requests,  as  did  the  priests  of 
Baal,  when  "  from  morning  to  evening,"  they 
cried  out,  "  O  Baal,  hear  us !  O  Baal,  hear  us  !" 
This  was  monotonous,  senseless  vociferation,  and 
had  none  of  the  properties  of  prayer.  The 
"  man  of  God"  w  ho  stood  by,  and  listened  to 
this  noisy,  tumultuous  worship,  offered  a  brief 
and  ardent  supplication,  every  word  of  which 
was  full  of  thought.  "  And  it  came  to  pass  at 
the  time  of  the  evening  sacrifice,  that  Elijah  came 
near  and  said,  Lord  God  of  Abraham,  Isaac,  and 

J6 


362  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


Israel!  let  it  be  known  this  day  that  thou  art 
God  ifi  Israel,  and  that  /  am  thy  servant,  and  that 
I  have  done  all  these  things  at  thy  word.  Hear  me, 
O  Lord  hear  me,  that  this  people  may  know  that 
thou  art  the  Lord  God,  and  that  thou  hast 
turned  their  hearts  hack  again  /"  The  argument 
is  perfect.  If  God  would  be  knowfi  as  God  in 
Israel ;  if  he  would  be  honored  for  the  faithful- 
ness of  his  promises  to  Abraham  and  his  seed ; 
if  he  would  publicly  confirm  the  mission  of  his 
own  prophet,  and  reclaim  his  backsliding  peo- 
ple ;  the  appeal  is  one  which  could  not  be 
resisted. 

The  power  of  prayer  consists  not  in  vapid  and 
vain  repetitions,  but  in  affecting  thoughts,  pre- 
sented in  all  the  fervency  of  desire,  and  all  the 
simplicity  and  humility  of  faith.  Such  was  the 
prayer  of  Abraham,  when  he  interceded  for  So- 
dom ;  such  was  the  prayer  of  Jacob,  when,  "  as 
a  prince,  he  had  power  with  God  and  with  man, 
and  prevailed;"  such  was  the  prayer  of  Moses, 
when  he  entreated  that  the  divine  anger  might 
be  turned  away  from  the  congregation  of  Israel; 
such  was  the  prayer  of  Hezekiah,  when  he  re- 
ceived the  menacing  message  of  the  proud  King 
of  Assyria ;  such  was  the  prayer  of  Nehemiah 
and  Daniel,  when  they  interceded  for  the  resto- 
ration of  the  exiled  Jews ;  and  such  was  that 


PRAYER  ENFORCED.  363 


wonderful  prayer  of  the  Saviour  with,  and  for 
his  disciples,  uttered  just  before  his  crucifixion. 
If  the  reader  will  turn  to  these  supplications, 
and  analyze  them,  he  will  be  surprised  to  find 
how  replete  they  are  with  thought  and  argu- 
ment. They  are  remarkable  for  their  energy, 
as  well  as  for  their  simplicity ;  nor  is  it  possible 
for  a  devout  mind  to  repeat  these  impressive 
and  earnest  pleadings  with  God  without  feeling 
their  force,  and  perceiving  that  reason  and  ar- 
gument are  not  out  of  place  in  prayer.  "  O  that 
I  knew  where  I  might  find  him!  I  would  come 
near  even  to  his  seat ;  I  would  order  my  speech 
before  him,  and  fill  my  mouth  with  arguments .'" 
Here  lie§  the  power  of  prayer.  It  is  to  plead 
with  God  as  a  man  expostulates  with  his  friend. 
Who  will  question  that  prayer  has  power  with 
God,  when  he  hears  the  voice  to  Moses,  as  he  was 
about  to  intercede  for  idolatrous  Israel,  "  Let  me 
alone,  that  my  wrath  may  wax  hot  against  them !" 
And  how  has  it  power  ?  Not  by  any  mechan- 
ical force  or  physical  impulse,  but  by  its  moral 
energy ;  by  its  spirit,  by  its  reasons  and  argu- 
ments, by  the  force  of  all  those  considerations 
by  which  a  benevolent  mind  is  moved  to  ex- 
press its  bounty,  a  gracious  mind  the  tenderness 
and  riches  of  its  compassions,  and  the  immutable 
mind  to  evince  itself  the  prayer-hearing  and 
prayer-answering  God. 


364  THE   MERCY   SEAT. 


The  strong  ari^uments,  the  prevalent  reasons 
in  prayer  are  drawn  from  God  himself.  "  For 
thine  is  the  kingdom,  the  power,  and  the  glory." 
This  shuts  out  all  arguments  drawn  from  tlie 
creature ;  from  any  merit  we  have,  as  well  as 
any  in  those  around  us.  The  best  of  men  have 
no  worthiness  to  plead.  "  We  do  not,"  says 
the  captive  suppliant  in  Babylon,  "  present  our 
supplications  before  thee  for  our  righteousness- 
es." They  are  rebel  men  who  pray.  They 
may  plead  their  own  misery,  their  wants,  their 
wretchedness,  their  vileness ;  but  the  fulness  on 
which  they  rely  is  his  fulness ;  the  meri];  they 
plead  is  his  merit ;  the  bounty  and  grace  they 
ask  are  his  bounty  and  grace  ;  and  the  glory  of 
giving  is  his,  and  will  redound  to  him  forever. 
All  the  divine  perfections  harmonize  in  bestow- 
ing blessings  on  the  guilty  and  ill-deserving. 
"  Mercy  and  truth  have  met  together ;  right- 
eousness and  peace  have  kissed  each  other." 
The  medium  of  communication  between  heaven 
and  earth  is  one.  "  Let  no  man,"  says  the  Apos- 
tle, "glory  in  men.  For  all  things  are  yours; 
whether  Paul,  or  Apollos,  or  the  world,  or  life, 
or  death,  or  things  present,  or  things  to  come  ; 
all  are  yours,  and  ye  are  Christ's,  and  Christ  is 
God's." 

The  man  who  "  orders  his  cause"  wisely, 
most  honors  the  God  of  heaven.     lie  makes  his 


PRAYER  ENFORCED.  365 


appeal  to  the  divine  nature,  to  the  divine  Provi- 
dence, to  the  redemption  by  his  Son.  His  argu- 
ments are  drawn  from  the  knowledge  and  love 
of  God,  and  from  the  revealed  principles  of  his 
government  and  grace.  The  divine  kingdom 
and  glory  furnish  him  with  arguments.  His  re- 
liance on  the  promises,  furnishes  him  with  argu- 
ments. When  tempted  not  to  pray,  because  he 
himself  is  so  vile  ;  when  his  heart  is  shut  up,  and 
his  lips  are  well  nigh  sealed  in  silence,  by  the 
humbling  sense  of  his  oWn  ill-desert  and  shame ; 
when  most  depressed  and  most  discouraged,  and 
almost  crushed  to  hopeless  despondency,  because 
he  can  find  nothing  in  his  past  history,  or  his 
present  character,  that  can  give  him  courage  and 
hope  ;  then  it  is  that  the  boundless  all-sufficiency 
and  illimitable  grace  of  the  great  Hearer  of 
prayer  inspirits  his  otherwise  discouraged  heart, 
and  his  language  is,  Give,  O  Lord;  for  thine  it  is 
to  give.  I  have  nothing;  but  all  is  thine.  I  am 
nothing  ;  but  thou  are  all  in  all.  I  am  poor,  and 
miserable,  and  vile ;  but  thine  is  the  kingdom, 
and  the  power,  and  the  glory.  All  is  thine; 
thou  hast  all  authority.  All  that  is  beautiful  and 
great  is  thine,  and  from  thee. 

No  matter  how  great  the  boon  we  seek,  or 
how  undeserved,  or  how  far  above  our  reach ; 
no  matter  how  urgent  the  necessity,  or  how  won- 
derful the  relief,  we  pray  and  hope  for;  if  the- e 


366  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


are  reasons  for  giving  it  to  be  found  in  the  wis- 
dom, goodness,  power,  mercy,  rectitude,  and 
glory  of  the  great  God,  or  in  any  of  the  forms  of 
his  boundless  sufficiency,  or  in  any  of  the  mani- 
festations of  his  great  and  glorious  name,  and  if 
they  can  be  perceived  and  felt,  and  presented  at 
the  mercy  seat,  of  this  one  thing  we  may  be 
assured,  that  the  suppliant  shall  not  be  sent 
away  empty. 

When  Abraham  interceded  for  Sodom,  his  ar- 
gument rested  on  the  moral  rectitude  of  God. 
This  was  the  only  consideration  he  urged.  It 
prevailed.  God  "  could  not  destroy  the  right- 
eous with  the  wicked." 

The  prayer  of  Jacob,  on  his  return  to  the  land 
of  his  fathers,  when  met  by  his  enraged  brother, 
Esau,  rested  on  the  divine  faithfulness.  God 
had  said,  "  Return  to  thy  country,  and  to  thy 
kindred,  and  I  will  deal  well  with  thee."  The 
*'  best  he  could  say  to  God  in  prayer,  was  what 
God  had  thus  said  to  him  in  promise."  He 
turned  the  promises  of  God  into  petitions,  and 
was  emboldened  to  say,  "  I  will  not  let  thee  go, 
until  thou  bless  me." 

The  intercession  of  Moses  for  the  idolatrous 
Israelites  was  founded  on  the  divine  honor  and 
glory.  "  If  thou  smite  this  people,  then  the 
Egyptians  shall  hear  of  it,  and,  -tell  it  to  the 
inhabitants  of  this  land."     Such,  too,  was  the 


PRAYER  ENFORCED.  367 


argument  of  Joshua,  when  he  rent  his  clothes, 
and  fell  to  the  earth  upon  his  face,  before  the 
ark,  and  said,  "  Alas,  O  Lord  God  !  what  shall  I 
say  when  Israel  turneth  their  back  before  their 
enemies?  For  the  Canaanites,  and  the  inhabit- 
ants of  the  land,  shall  hear  of  it;  and  what  wilt 
thou  do  unto  thy  great  nameV^ 

That  memorable  prayer  of  Jehoshaphat,  when 
the  Israelites  were  invaded  by  the  allied  powers 
of  Moab,  Ammon  and  Edom,  rested  its  expostu- 
lations upon  God's  supremacy  and  power,  his 
grant  of  the  Holy  Land  to  Israel,  his  promise  to 
deliver  them  out  of  the  hand  of  their  enemies, 
and  upon  the  patient  hope  and  expectation  of 
his  people  upon  him  alone. 

These  are  but  specimens  of  the  supplications- 
recorded  throughout  the  entire  Scriptures,  all  of 
which  partake  of  the  same  high  and  disinterested 
character.  One  cannot  read  them  without  see- 
ing, that  the  urgency  and  energy  of  every 
request  rests  upon  some  appeal  to  the  glory 
of  the  divine  name.  Not  only  are  they  replete 
with  reason  and  argument,  but  with  considera- 
tions drawn  from  this  high  source.  They  do  not 
consist  of  rhetorical  flourishes,  but  of  weighty 
and  solemn  thoughts,  uttered  in  the  simplicity, 
tenderness,  and  solemnity  of  true  devotion ;  and 
while  they  are  expressive  of  the  spirit  of  adop- 
tion, are  also  expressive  of  sacred  awe  of  the  di- 


368  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


vine  majesty;  and  while  they  disclaim  reliance 
on  other  helpers,  take  hold  of  God's  strength, 
because  it  is  the  object  and  the  encouragement 
of  prayer,  to  honor  him.  It  is  not  the  strength 
of  the  creature,  that  gives  prayer  its  energy,  but 
his  weakness;  nor  is  it  the  creature's  authority, 
but  God's;  nor  is  it  the  work  or  the  worthiness 
of  man,  on  which  it  rests,  but  the  work  of  God; 
nor  is  it  man's  glory  that  it  seeks,  but  God's 
glory;  nor  are  any  of  its  resources  found  in  man, 
but  in  God  alone. 

It  is  delightful,  also,  to  observe  the  strong 
confidence  of  prayer,  when  it  rests  its  pleadings  on 
such  arguments  as  these.  While  it  becomes  us  to 
call  upon  God  with  an  humble  and  submissive, 
it  is  not  less  our  duty  and  privilege  to  call  upon 
him  with  a  confiding  mind.  Requests  as  large 
and  comprehensive  as  those  expressed  in  the 
Lord's  Prayer,  demand  strong  confidence  in  God. 
We  approach  his  throne  as  creatures,  and  as  sin- 
ners— in  all  dependence  and  poverty — in  all 
emptiness  and  ignorance — in  all  weakness  and 
pollution — for  blessings  which  we  ourselves  can 
neither  deserve  nor  procure,  and  which  no  cre- 
ated being  can  deserve  or  procure  for  us. 

To  approach  with  holy  and  joyful  confidence, 
we  must  acquaint  ourselves  with  God — must 
ascertain  the  foundations  for  confidence  that  are 
realized  in  his  all-suificiency  and  fulness;  and 


PRAYER  ENFORCED.  369 


while  we  turn  aw^ay  with  suspicion  and  distrust 
from  all  others,  look  beyond  them  all,  to  Him, 
with  that  affectionate  and  confiding  spirit  that  is 
warranted  by  his  infinite  and  unchanging  perfec- 
tions, and  the  Sacrifice  which  has  opened  a  new 
and  living  w^ay  to  his  throne.  "  They  that  trust 
in  the  Lord,  shall  be  as  Mount  Zion,  which  can- 
not be  moved,  but  abideth  forever."  "  Though 
He  slay  me,  yet  will  I  trust  in  him."  "  How 
great  is  thy  goodness  toward  them  that  fear 
Thee,  to  them  that  trust  in  thee  before  the  sons 
of  men!"  "Hath  He  said  it,  and  shall  he  not 
do  it  ?"     Such  is  the  confidence  of  prayer. 

The  people  of  God  have  sometimes  strong 
confidence  and  great  boldness  in  this  exercise, 
because  "  great  grace  is  upon  them."  There 
are  three  things  which  invigorate  and  inspirit 
this  confidence.  "For  thine  is  the  kingdmUy  the 
power,  and  the  glory. ''^ 

Thine  is  the  kingdom.  What  w^e  solicit,  be- 
longs to  God,  and  he  has  it  to  give.  We  can- 
not ask  too  much,  w^e  cannot  hope  too  much 
from  him,  because  universal  sovereignty  belongs 
to  him ;  the  essential  kingdom  of  the  universe, 
extending  itself  over  the  worlds  of  matter  and 
of  mind,  of  nature  and  of  grace,  is  his  unbor- 
rowed, underived,  eternal  prerogative.  He  is 
"  God  over  all,  blessed  fiarever."  He  stands 
supreme  among  the  whole  intelligent  creation ; 
15* 


370  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


the  ascendency  of  his  nature,  and  the  infinite 
superiority  of  all  that  belongs  to  it,  give  him  a 
right  to  all  things,  make  him  their  owner  and 
proprietor,  and  invest  him  with  the  natural  and 
moral  right,  the  sovereign  and  uncontrollable 
right  of  giving.  This  is  a  reason,  alike  for  our 
asking,  and  his  giving. 

If  men  claim  the  right  of  disposing  of  wdiat 
belongs  to  them,  much  more  has  He  the  "  right 
to  do  what  he  will  with  his  ow n."  He  has  it 
to  bestow  in  plenteousness  which  no  thought 
can  limit.  "  Giving  does  not  impoverish  him, 
neither  does  withholding  enrich  him."  He  can 
satisfy  the  amplest  wishes.  His  encouraging 
language  is,  "  Ask  and  it  shall  be  given  you." 
Let  all  your  wants  be  upon  me.  "  I  am  God, 
all-sufficient."  The  greater  and  more  valuable 
the  blessings  ^ve  desire,  the  more  confident 
may  we  be  of  receiving  them  in  answer  to 
prayer.  It  is  related  of  Alexander  the  great, 
that  on  one  occasion  he  told  the  philosopher 
Anaxarchus  to  go  to  his  treasurer  and  ask  w^hat 
he  w  anted.  The  treasurer  was  surprised  at  the 
greatness  of  the  sum,  and  refused  to  pay  it 
without  consulting  his  Prince.  "  It  seemed," 
said  he,  "  too  much  for  one  man  to  receive." 
The  reply  of  his  sovereign  was,  "  It  is  not  too 
much  for  Alexander  to  give.  He  does  honor  to 
my  riches  and  liberality  by  so  large  a  request." 


PRAYER    ENFORCED.  371 


*•  Thine  is  the  kingdom  T'  The  princely  liber- 
ality of  the  King  of  the  universe  can  no  more 
be  exhausted,  than  his  inexhaustible  fulness  and 
all-sufficiency.  He  is  not  more  a  boundless 
ocean  of  blessedness,  than  of  munificence.  He 
is  the  great  Benefactor,  as  truly  as  the  great 
King.  He  takes  a  Godlike  pleasure  in  answer- 
ing the  supplications  of  his  people ;  his  king- 
dom itself  is  extended  and  promoted  by  it ;  the 
greater  the  blessing,  the  more  does  his  benevo- 
lent and  liberal  heart  express  itself,  and  the 
more   is  it  gratified   and   honored   by  the    gift. 

Thine  is  the  power.  His  too  is  the  power, 
as  well  as  the  kingdom.  That  which  he  is 
pleased  to  will  he  is  able  to  bestow.  If  his 
power  to  bestow  were  more  limited  than  his 
right,  or  his  disposition  to  give,  there  w^ould  be 
no  strong  foundation  for  confidcQce  in  prayer. 
If  there  were  a  single  blessing  he  could  not 
give,  our  confidence  in  him  would  be  shaken 
for  every  blessing.  Should  his  power  fail  in 
one  instance,  it  were  impossible  for  us  to  know 
that  it  would  not  fail  in  ten  thousand  instances, 
and  in  those  in  which  the  spirit  of  prayer  feels 
the  deepest  interest. 

The  confidence  of  the  father  of  the  faithful 
was  encouraged  by  the  declaration,  "  I  am  the 
Almighty  God ;"  Job  was  comforted  with  the 
thought,  "  I  know  that   thou    canst   do   every- 


372  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


thing ;"  and  the  devout  Psalmist  gloried  in  the 
truth,  "  Our  God  is  in  the  heavens ;  he  hath 
done  whatever  he  hath  pleased." 

The  omnipotence  of  God  hath  not  a  little  to 
do  with  the  spirit  of  prayer.  "  Strong  is  his 
hand,  and  high  is  his  right  hand."  He  has  a 
Godlike  arm,  as  well  as  a  Godlike  heart.  Be 
the  good  we  crave  what  it  may — spiritual,  or 
temporal — relating  to  ourselves,  or  others — be 
it  ever  so  retired  and  hidden  from  the  eye,  or 
beyond  the  reach  of  creatures — he  can  bestow 
it  with  infinite  ease.  "  He  speaks,  and  it  is 
done  ;  he  commands,  and  it  stands  fast."  Noth- 
ing can  hinder,  nothing  disappoint,  nothing 
weary  him.  "  Whatsoever  his  soul  desireth, 
that  he  doeth."  Difficulties,  enemies,  unvvorthi- 
ness,  ill-desert,  and  the  constant  recurrence 
of  our  wants,  form  no  obstacle  to  his  bounty. 
If  the  good  we  crave  be  found  anywhere  in  the 
wide  universe,  he  can  lay  it  at  our  feet ;  or  if 
it  is  not  in  being,  his  all-powerful  word  can 
create  it,  and  give  existence  to  what  had  no 
existence  before.  "  He  can  do  all  things." 
What  an  argument  for  prayer,  to  say,  "Thine 
is  the  power .'" 

And  the  result  is.  Thine  is  the  glory  !  Here 
the  argument  and  the  ground  of  confidence  be- 
come firm  and  invincible.  His  is  the  glory  of 
being   the    hearer   of  prayer ;  for  "  this  is  his 


PRAYER  ENFORCED.  373 


name,  and  this  is  his  memorial  to  all  generations." 
His  is  the  glory  of  this  wondrous  condescension 
and  grace ;  for  he  stoops  to  man  who  is  a  worm, 
and  to  sinful  man  who  has  provoked  his  wrath. 
His  is  the  glory  of  giving ;  of  giving  where  there 
is  no  merit  and  no  recompense  ;  of  so  giving 
— so  variously  and  so  largely.  His  goodness, 
wisdom,  power,  justice,  faithfulness,  mercy, 
and  sovereignty,  all  appear  in  their  love- 
liness, beauty,  and  divine  splendor  in  answer- 
ing prayer.  He  gives  what  spotless  inno- 
cence cannot  claim ;  what  a  world  could  not 
buy ;  and  by  so  doing  his  glory  is  both  secured 
and  advanced. 

It  is  great  glory  which  he  spreads  over  the 
works  of  his  hands  ;  but  in  giving  what  his  peo- 
ple pray  for,  there  is  glory  beyond  all  the  glories 
of  the  natural  world.  Such  a  mind  as  New- 
ton's, looking  out  on  the  fields  of  space,  sprin- 
kled v\  ith  suns  for  other  systems  as  a  meadow 
is  decked  with  flowers,  beholds  in  these  won- 
drous works  a  glory  which  intelligence  and 
piety  delight  to  contemplate.  But  the  glory  of 
God  as  the  hearer  of  prayer,  as  the  greatest  of 
all  givers,  as  the  author  and  sustainer  of  the 
new  creation  in  the  hearts  of  men  and  in  this 
apostate  world,  with  all  its  holiness,  all  its 
hopes,  all  its  joys,  surpasses  it  all,  shines  when 


374  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


the   sun  has  gone  out,  and  the  cycles  of  time 
have  come  to  a  close. 

"  Thine  is  the  kingdom,  and  the  power,  and 
the  glory  forever  !"  The  spirit  of  prayer  is  a 
far  reaching  spirit ;  it  looks  into  eternity.  The 
kingdom,  and  the  power,  and  the  glory  are 
thine  always;  forever  shall  they  shine  in  grow- 
ing and  augmented  splendor.  Hereafter  and 
throughout  ceaseless  ages,  "  as  it  was  in  the  be- 
ginning, is  now,  and  ever  shall  be,  world  with- 
out end,"  the  God  of  heaven  is  exalted  as  the 
hearer  of  prayer. 

The  three  great  arguments  in  prayer  are 
therefore  the  three  strong  grounds  of  the  sup- 
pliant's confidence.  The  God  we  worship  com- 
mands that  confidence  for  what  he  is ;  sustains 
it  by  what  he  has  said  and  done;  perpetuates  it 
by  what  he  is  still  able  and  willing  to  do,  and 
will  have  the  glory  of  doing,  in  answer  to  the 
supplications  of  his  people. 

Nor  is  it  any  reason  why  that  confidence 
should  be  shaken,  that  sometimes  he  defers  our 
requests,  or  withholds  the  solicited  blessing. 
If  we  ask  for  what  is  best,  we  know  that  he 
heareth  us;  while,  if  through  ignorance,  infir- 
mity, or  sin,  we  fail  in  doing  this,  we  still  know 
that  he  will  not  be  unmindful  of  our  highest 
good,  though  he  exercises  his  own  wisdom  and 
discretion  in  declining,  as  well  as  granting  our 


PRAYER  ENFORCED.  375 


requests.  There  is  no  ground  for  discourage- 
ment in  prayer,  where  the  Christian  casts  all  his 
care  on  God;  nor,  on  the  other  hand,  is  there 
any  motive  to  prayer,  or  any  comfort  in  this  de- 
lightful duty,  where  these  divine^  resources  are 
lost  sight  of  We  become  wise  in  his  wisdom, 
mighty  in  his  power,  comforted  in  his  all-suffi- 
ciency; when  his  wisdom  guides  us,  when  we 
take  hold  of  his  everlasting  strength,  and  when, 
worms  as  we  are,  his  all-sufficiency  influences 
our  prayers  and  actuates  our  conduct. 

There  is  no  place  for  discouragement,  no 
room  for  despondency,  so  long  as  the  kingdom, 
and  the  power,  and  the  glory  are  the  Lord's. 
Thinking  of  ourselves  only,  and  of  our  sins,  and 
wants,  and  dangers,  we  have  good  cause  for  ap- 
prehension. But  there  is  One  who  is  God  over 
all,  who  has  all  hearts  in  his  hands  and  all 
events  under  his  control,  whom  heaven  and 
earth  and  sea  obey,  who  is  able  to  save  and  to 
destroy,  before  whom  angels  bow  and  devils 
tremble  ;  and  though  we  are  perfect  weakness, 
yet  is  his  grace  sufficient,  and  his  glory  our 
rearward. 

Prayer  terminates  in  praise.     The  Father  of 

mercies  and  the  God  of  all  grace  is  worthy  to 

'be  exalted.     Those  excellencies  of  the  divine 

nature  we  most  dwell  upon  in  prayer,  and  those 

considerations  we  make  use  of  as  our  strongest 


376  THE  MERCY   SEAT. 


arguments  at  the  throne  of  grace,  the  more  we 
*  contemplate  them,  become  expressive  of  reve- 
rence and  honor,  kindle  into  gratitude  and  joy, 
and  are  the  themes  of  admiring  song.  While 
we  take  encouragement  in  our  prayers  because 
the  kingdom,  power,  and  glory  are  the  Lord's, 
we  necessarily  desire  that  he  may  be  exalted 
and  glorified,  and  ascribe  to  him  the  glory  due 
to  his  holy  name. 

On  that  great  occasion,  when  the  princes  and 
people  of  Israel  offered  so  willingly  for  building 
the  Temple,  "  David  blessed  the  Lord,  before  all 
the  congregation.  And  David  said.  Blessed 
be  thou.  Lord  God  of  Israel  our  father,  forever 
and  ever.  Thine,  O  Lord,  is  the  greatness,  and 
the  power,  and  the  glory,  and  the  victory,  and 
the  majesty;  for  all  that  is  in  the  heaven 
and  in  the  earth  is  thine;  thine  is  the  kingdom, 
O  Lord,  and  thou  art  exalted  as  head  above  all. 
Both  riches  and  honor  come  of  thee,  and  thou 
reignest  over  all;  and  in  thine  hand  is  power 
and  might,  and  thine  it  is  to  make  great,  and 
to  give  strength  unto  all.  Now,  therefore,  O 
God,  we  thank  thee,  and  praise  thy  glorious 
name  !"  Paul's  ascription  was,  "  Now  unto  the 
King  eternal,  immortal,  invisible,  the  only  wise 
God,  be  honor  and  glory,  forever  and  ever!" 
"  Whoso  offereth  praise,"  saith  God,  "  glorifieth 
me."      Praise    engages    him   to   hear.      "  Sing 


PRAYER  ENFORCED.  377 


praises  unto  God,  ye  kingdoms  of  the  earth  ;  oh, 
sing  praises  unto  the  Lord  !  Talk  of  him,  speak 
forth  his  name  ;  say  of  him,  Thine  is  the  king- 
dom T' — the  unbounded,  universal  kingdom,  of 
nature,  providence,  and  grace,  is  thine  !  The 
visible  and  the  invisible,  the  kingdom  above, 
and  the  kingdom  below,  the  kingdom  of  grace 
and  the  kingdom  of  justice,  are  thine.  *'  Thy 
kingdom  is  an  everlasting  kingdom,  and  of  thy 
dominion  there  is  no  end."  Above  the  heavens, 
beyond  the  earth,  belovi^  the  ocean,  thy  kingdom 
is  prepared,  O  God,  and  thou  reignest  forever. 
The  kingdoms  of  this  world  are  but  little  spots 
of  earth,  compared  with  thy  vast  dominions,  O 
thou  sovereign  Lord;  and  the  princes  of  this 
world  are  but  vanity,  compared  with  thee. 
Thine,  too,  is  the  iiower.  "  Who,  O  Lord,  is  a 
strong  Lord,  like  unto  thee,  or  to  thy  faith- 
fulness round  about  thee?"  What  wonders  hast 
thou  done,  O  thou  who  art  very  great,  and 
art  clothed  with  majesty !  "  Thou  layest  the 
beams  of  thy  chambers  in  the  mighty  waters ; 
thou  makest  the  clouds  thy  chariot,  and  walk- 
est  upon  the  wings  of  the  wind.'"  The  "  Lord 
God  omnipotent  reigneth,  and  let  the  earth 
rejoice  !"  And  the  glorij  is  thine.  The  glory  of 
creatures  is  fallen,  and  their  memory  forgotten. 
The  flower  of  Lebanon,  and  the  beauty  of 
Bashan   and   Carmel   languish;    but   thy  glory 


378  THE   MERCY  SEAT. 


is  above  the  earth  and  the  heavens.  "  Glorious 
art  thou  in  holiness,  fearful  in  praises,  doing 
wonders."  As  a  great  God,  and  a  great  King, 
decked  as  he  is  with  light  as  with  a  garment, 
and  arrayed  in  majesty  and  excellency,  we 
may  hope  in  him,  and  we  may  praise  him. 
The  kingdom,  the  power,  and  the  glory,  are 
his  forever.  "  The  Lord  shall  reign  forever  and 
ever."  What  a  word  is  that  one  word ''for- 
ever !"  Nothing  can  increase,  nothing  diminish, 
nothing  terminate  the  kingdom,  power,  and 
glory  of  God.  Always  glorious,  always  reign- 
ing in  the  fulness  of  his  glory,  he  is  God  over 
all,  blessed  for  evermore. 

And  to  these  ascriptions,  the  spirit  of  prayer 
adds  its  hearty  and  emphatic  Ame?i/  This  is  a 
term  of  great  emphasis.  The  original  word  sig- 
nifies solidity — not  to  be  shaken ;  truth  that 
stands  firm.  "  He  which  testifieth  these  things 
saith,  I  come  quickly ;  amen.  Even  so,  come, 
Lord  Jesus !"  We  utter  this  emphatic  term,  in 
testimony  of  our  desire  to  be  heard,  and  of  our 
assurance  of  being  so.  "  Lord,  thou  hast  heard 
the  desire  of  the  humble;  thou  wilt  prepare 
their  heart,  for  thou  wilt  cause  thine  ear  to 
hear."  The  desire  and  prayer  for  blessings 
always  has  some  measure  of  assurance  of  them, 
in  God's  own  time  and  way.  Let  the  kingdom 
be   the   Lord's;    let  the   power  and   the  glory 


PRAYER  ENFORCED.  379 


be  his  forever.  Let  him  be  exalted,  and  all 
creatures  lie  low  at  his  footstool !  Prayer  and 
praise  may  not  be  given  to  earth  and  creatures. 
We  pay  no  such  homage  to  the  painting  of  the 
artist,  the  statuary  of  the  sculptor,  nor  to  any 
image  graven  by  art  or  man's  device,  nor  to  hero 
gods,  nor  to  martyred  saints.  To  God  alone 
give  glory.  "  Blessed  be  the  Lord  God,  the 
God  of  Israel,  who  only  doeth  wondrous  things! 
And  blessed  be  his  glorious  name  forever!  and 
let  the  whole  earth  be  filled  with  his  glory, 
amen  and  amen !" 

Thus  it  is  that  "  in  our  prayers  we  praise  him." 
The  spirit  of  the  closet  and  the  sanctuary  are 
closely  allied  to  the  spirit  of  heaven.  "  At  his 
throne  of  grace,  we  are  but  a  little  distance  from 
his  throne  of  glory."  The  nearer  we  come 
to  God,  the  more  evidence  have  we  that  we 
shall  dwell  with  God.  He  that  would  be  fitted 
for  heaven,  must  be  much  in  prayer,  while  on 
the  earth. 

Alas !  how  little  account  do  even  God's  own 
people  make  of  prayer !  The  pulse  of  spiritual 
life  would  never  become  low  in  the  bosom 
of  Christians,  did  they  know  more  of  the  power 
of  prayer.  The  dews  of  mercy  would  not  be 
so  often  and  so  long  restrained,  nor  the  rain  of 
heaven  withheld,  nor  its  clouds  shut  up,  did  they 
know   what   may  be    so   easily  known  of  the 


380  THE  MERCY  SEAT. 


power  and  preciousness  of  prayer.  God  would 
remember  his  covenant,  his  church  would 
flourish  like  the  cedar  in  Lebanon,  and  grow  as 
the  vine,  were  she  more  faithful  and  diligent  in 
thus  proving  the  faithfulness  and  love  of  her 
divine  Lord.  Come,  oh,  ''come  thou  north 
wind,  and  blow  thou  south,  and  breathe  upon 
thy  garden,  that  the  spices  thereof  may  flow 
forth !" 

How  marvellous,  too,  is  it  that  wicked  men 
never  pray,  or  pray  so  little  !  What  a  wonder- 
ful foundation  is  laid  for  prayer  in  the  nature 
of  the  Deity,  and  at  the  mercy  seat  where  the 
blood  of  Jesus  pleads  for  the  chief  of  sinners  ! 
O  that  the  thoughtless,  impenitent  reader  of 
these  humble  pages  might  be  allured  by  them 
to  the  throne  of  the  heavenly  grace !  He  must 
live  a  life  of  prayer,  that  would  die  a  death  of 
praise. 

Tliey  are  those  who  love  to  pray,  to  whom  the 
author  takes  leave  to  address  this  last  paragraph. 
Let  the  Christian  reader  call  to  mind  what  and 
where  he  would  have  been  without  prayer ;  let 
him  value  the  privilege  more  than  the  gold  of 
Ophir.  If  in  his  more  favored  seasons  of  fel- 
lowship with  his  heavenly  Father,  he  seems 
sometimes  to  leave  these  earthly  regions  behind 
him,  and  take  his  flight  almost  within  the  veil ; 
let  him  "  thank  God  and  take  courage."     The 


PRAYER  ENFORCED.  381 


earthly  house  of  his  tabernacle  will  soon  be 
dissolv^ed,  and  those  who  here  truly  call  God 
their  Father,  will  bow  with  the  great  multitude 
which  no  man  can  number,  and  ascribe  bless- 
ing, and  honor,  and  glory,  and  thanksgiving, 
and  power,  and  might,  to  him  who  is  seated  on 
the  throne  and  to  the  Lamb.  Nothing  is  more 
certain,  than  that  the  affectionate  appeal,  "  Our 
Father  who  art  in  heaven,"  will  terminate  in 
the  holy  ardor  of  the  everlasting  song.  Won- 
drous wisdom,  wondrous  goodness,  wondrous 
grace,  are  they  which  are  the  themes  of  their 
song.  Wonders  still  greater  must  remain  untold, 
uncelebrated.  The  piety  of  heaven  is  progres- 
sive, though  sinless ;  their  love  is  a  constant, 
bright  and  glowing  flame  ;  their  yoj  unspeakable 
and  full  of  glory.  The  thoughts  they  utter  and 
the  emotions  which  swell  their  song  are  the  most 
delightful,  the  most  tender,  the  most  pure  and 
elevated,  and  rapturous.  Creatures  are  forgotten 
there,  and  God  alone  is  exalted.  Created 
grandeur  fades ;  the  glory  of  all"  creatures  van- 
ishes. What  a  joyous,  what  a  ravishing  song, 
w^hen  ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand,  and 
thousands  of  thousands,  "  as  the  voice  of  many 
waters,  and  as  the  voice  of  mighty  thunderings, 
and  as  the  voice  of  harpers  harping  with  their 
harps,"  unite  in  the  ascription,  "  Unto  him  that 
loved  us,  and  washed  us  from  our  sins  in  his 


382  THE   MERCY    SEAT. 


own  blood,  and  hath  made  us  kings  and  priests 
unto  God,  even  his  father ;  to  him  be  glory  and 
dominion,  forever  and  ever!" 

The  more  the  reader  is  imbued  v\^ith  the  spirit 
of  heaven,  and  the  nearer  he  draws  to  that  un- 
seen world,  the  less  will  he  think,  and  feel,  and 
speak  of  meaner  things  and  meaner  joys,  and 
the  more  will  his  heart  and  tongue  be  filled 
with  praise.  O  that  men  would  praise  the 
Lord  for  his  goodness,  for  his  wonderful  works 
to  the  children  of  men  !  "  To  thee  all  angels 
cry  aloud  ;  the  heavens  and  all  the  powers  that 
are  therein.  To  thee  Cherubim  and  Seraphim 
continually  do  cry,  Holy,  holy,  holy  Lord  God 
of  Sabaoth;  heaven  and  earth  are  full  of  the 
majesty  of  thy  glory !  The  glorious  company 
of  the  Apostles  praise  thee,  the  goodly  fellow- 
ship of  the  Prophets  praise  thee,  the  noble  army 
of  martyrs  praise  thee."  The  holy  church 
throughout  all  the  world  doth  praise  thee.  Let 
everything  that   hath  breath  praise  the  Lord  ! 

Praise  is  the  appropriate  employment  of  the 
heavenly  world.  Or  rather,  it  is  the  employ- 
ment which  is  there  inwoven  with  all  other 
employments.  The  day  is  not  for  distant  when 
those  who  truly  offer  this  prayer  will  have  less  to 
ask  for,  than  to  enjoy  ;  nothing  daily  to  confess, 
because  they  will  sin  no  more;  no  wants,  no  trials 
to  spread  before  the  throne  of  infinite  mercy,  be- 


PRAYER   ENFORCED.  383 


cause  every  want  shall  be  supplied,  and  all  tears 
shall  be  wiped  from  every  eye.  His  name  shall 
then  be  everywhere  hallowed ;  his  kingdom 
shall  have  come  in  its  glory ;  they  themselves, 
"  clothed  in  white  robes  and  with  palms  in  their 
hands,"  shall  "  bow  before  the  throne  of  God, 
and  serve  him  day  and  night  in  his  temple." 
They  shall  hear  the  voice  of  much  people  in 
heaven,  and  with  them  shall  cry  "  Hallelujah, 
glory,  salvation,  honor  and  power  to  the  Lord 
our  God !"  And  again  they  shall  say,  Halle- 
lujah ! 


THE    END. 


DATE  DUE 

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CAVLORO 

1    1012  01025  2718 


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